Oldest depictions of fungi

Ancient cave paintings at Tassili n'Ajjer in Algeria, dating back some 9,000 years, offer intriguing insights into the use of mushrooms in ancient cultures. Ethnobotanist Terence McKenna (in his 1992 book Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge) and scholar Giorgio Samorini (in the Journal of Mind-moving Plants and Culture, also in 1992) both examined these paintings, suggesting that they depict shamans engaged in mushroom rituals. The artwork features shamans dancing with mushrooms in their hands and sprouting from their bodies, surrounded by hallucinatory geometric patterns.

The U.S. Forest Service recognizes Tassili as having the oldest petroglyphs illustrating the use of psychoactive mushrooms, potentially Psilocybe mushrooms, known today for their psychedelic properties.