Mescaline

Mescaline became a popular sensation in the mid-twentieth century through Aldous Huxley’s ‘The Doors of Perception’, after which the word “psychedelic” was coined to describe it. Its story, however, extends deep into prehistory: the earliest Andean cultures depicted mescaline-containing cacti in their temples. Mike Jay’s book is a definitive history of mescaline that explores its mind-altering effects across cultures, from ancient America to Western modernity.