Peyote &
Mescaline
Peyote is a
small, spineless cactus, Lophophora williamsii, whose principal
active ingredient is the hallucinogen mescaline (3, 4,
5-trimethoxyphenethylamine). From earliest recorded time, peyote
has been used by natives in northern Mexico and the southwestern
United States as a part of their religious rites.
The top of
the cactus above ground--also referred to as the crown--consists
of disc-shaped buttons that are cut from the roots and dried.
These buttons are generally chewed or soaked in water to produce
an intoxicating liquid. The hallucinogenic dose of mescaline is
about 0.3 to 0.5 grams and lasts about 12 hours. While peyote
produced rich visual hallucinations that were important to the
native peyote cults, the full spectrum of effects served as a
chemically induced model of mental illness. Mescaline can be
extracted from peyote or produced synthetically. Both peyote and
mescaline are listed in the CSA as Schedule I hallucinogens.
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