Mescaline

Mescaline
Chemical name	3,4,5-Trimethoxy- phenethylamine or 2-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl) ethanamine
Chemical formula	C11H17NO3
Molecular mass	211.26 g/mol
Melting point	128–129 °C
CAS numbers	54-04-6
SMILES	NCCC1=CC(OC)=C(OC)C(OC)=C1

Mescaline or 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethylamine is a psychedelic hallucinogenic drug and entheogen of the phenethylamine family. It is either synthesized or extracted from the peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii), the San Pedro cactus (Echinopsis pachanoi), or the Peruvian Torch cactus (Echinopsis peruviana). It is also found in a number of other members of the Cactaceae.

Extract from peyote was used in religious ceremonies from the earliest human contact, notably by the Huichols in Mexico. It was first isolated and identified in 1897 by the German Arthur Heffter and first synthesized in 1919. The effective human dosage is 200–400 milligrams (3.75 mg/kg), with the effects lasting for up to twelve hours. It is not physically addictive. In the US it was made illegal in 1970 by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act. It was prohibited internationally by the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances[1].

Mescaline powder

Chemistry

Mescaline can be synthesized, usually starting from 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzaldehyde (PiHKAL entry).

Famous Users

• Syd Barrett
• Carlos Castaneda
• Aldous Huxley
• Henri Michaux
• Hunter S. Thompson
• Jim Morrison

See also

• The Doors of Perception
• MKULTRA
• Phenethylamines
• Psilocybin
• Peyote
• Native American Church
• PiHKAL

External links

• Mescaline at Erowid
• PiHKAL entry

Categorization