Mythobotany of Coca
Revista de Arqueología Americana July 10, 2026 DOI: 10.35424/rearam.i44.6302 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key findings | Coca is identified as an important entheogen in South American shamanism, which is contrasted with religion. |
Abstract
This article encompasses the mythology and shamanic ethnobotany (or entheobotany) of coca (Erythroxylum coca Lamarck, Erythroxylum novogranatense [Morris] Hieronymus [each having two varieties—var. coca Lamarck and var. ipadu Plowman; and var. novogranatense (Morris) Plowman and var. truxillense (Rusby) Plowman; respectively], and likewise several wild Eryth- roxylum-species which may be employed as coca-substitutes) in South America.This is supported by a bibliography of 98 references. Coca is identified as an important entheogen or ‘shamanic inebriant’; the while shamanism is contrasted with religion.