This paper establishes the hypothesis that the Selva Pascuala mural, a work of post-Paleolithic rock art in Spain, contains fungoid figures depicting neurotropic fungi, especially Psilocybe hispanica, a species that occurs in a neighboring region. The mural represents the first direct evidence for possible ritual use of Psilocybe in prehistoric Europe.
A Prehistoric Mural in Spain Depicting NeurotropicPsilocybeMushrooms? The Selva Pascuala mural, a work of post-Paleolithic rock art in Spain, contains fungoid figures herein hypothesized to depict neurotropic fungi, especially Psilocybe hispanica, a species that occurs in a neighboring region. This hypothesis is based on features of these figures related to fungal morphology, along with ethnographic analogy, and shamanistic explanations of rock art. If correct, this interpretation would support inference of prehistoric utilization of this fungus in the region. The mural represents the first direct evidence for possible ritual use of Psilocybe in prehistoric Europe.
P. and colleagues approached the problem by comparing the fungoid pictographs in the Selva Pascuala mural with mycological morphology and taxonomic descriptions to assess whether they plausibly represent neurotropic fungi. The authors examined form features visible in the mural — number and arrangement of fruit bodies, cap (pileus) shape, stipe form, presence/absence of an annulus, and variations among individual pictographs — and interpreted these in light of fungal morphology and intraspecific variation. They consulted mycological literature and an expert (Dr Gastón Guzmán) to identify candidate species whose macroscopic characters and habitat preferences could match the mural figures. The authors evaluated and excluded alternative identifications (notably Amanita muscaria) on morphological and ecological grounds, and they reviewed regional mycological records and palaeoecological studies to consider whether the proposed species could have existed in the area during the mural’s formative period. Ethnographic analogy and recently proposed shamanistic/trance-based explanations for rock art were used to frame interpretations about ritual use, but the identification relied primarily on morphological and habitat comparisons between the pictographs and known fungal taxa.
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The mural contains a row of 13 fungoid pictographs showing individual variation in form. The depicted fruit bodies were interpreted as having a convex to conic‑subumbonate pileus and straight to sinuous stipes, and the images lack a persistent annulus. Two of the figures (positions ten and eleven, left to right) show a split or bifurcated base, which previous authors have interpreted as leg-like and led others to read those figures as schematised humans. On morphological grounds the authors excluded Amanita muscaria because it typically has a non-sinuous stipe, a large persistent annulus, and conspicuous veil remnants on the pileus — features not emphasised in the mural. Close morphological similarity was noted between the pictographs and the neurotropic species Psilocybe hispanica: pileus shape and stipe form in the mural correspond well with descriptions of P. hispanica. Habitat associations in the mural — the placement of fungoid figures in proximity to bovine animals — were also consistent with P. hispanica, which is coprophilic and has been collected from dung (reported from horse dung to date). Psilocybe semilanceata was judged less likely because its acutely papillate, narrowly conical to subcampanulate pileus and growth on soil rather than dung do not match the mural features or the apparent bovine association. The mycological record for P. hispanica is limited (the authors note it is known from only three collections, all from alpine Pinus forests in the Pyrenees at about 2,000–3,000 m). Selva Pascuala lies at c.1,070 m elevation, but the authors argue that other Psilocybe species have shown wider ecological amplitudes than originally described, and palaeobotanical/palaeoclimate studies in the broader region indicate Pinus-dominated forests were present during the mid-Holocene period relevant to the mural. The authors therefore conclude that neither the current known elevational records nor palaeoclimate data contradict the possible historical presence of P. hispanica in the area.
P. and colleagues interpret the fungoid pictographs as likely representations of neurotropic fungi and consider Psilocybe hispanica a particularly apt candidate given morphological concordance and the mural’s apparent association of fungi with bovine figures. They situate this interpretation within recent proposals that some rock art reflects ritualised trance or altered states of consciousness and draw on ethnographic analogies for Psilocybe and Amanita use to argue that the mural may reflect consumption of neurotropic fungi in a shamanistic or ritual context. The authors note the mural combines Levantine and Schematic stylistic elements and likely resulted from more than one episode of painting, with Levantine-style central animal figures (two bulls, a deer) predating schematic peripheral figures, including the fungoid pictographs. This compositional history introduces uncertainty because some figures may have been added later without disturbing earlier work. The authors acknowledge limitations: the taxonomic identification is tentative because P. hispanica is currently known from very few collections; the palaeoecological record for the immediate site (Sierra de las Cuerdas) is lacking; and the mural underwent re-elaboration over time, complicating interpretation of original intent. Despite these uncertainties, the authors argue that the combined morphological, ecological and contextual evidence supports their hypothesis. Finally, they position Selva Pascuala among a small number of rock art sites worldwide plausibly suggesting prehistoric use of neurotropic fungi (citing Pegtymel and Tassilli). They state that, if their interpretation is correct, Selva Pascuala would be the first direct evidence for possible ritual use of Psilocybe in prehistoric Europe and the second European rock art example likely representing Psilocybe (after Tassilli). The authors present their identification and cultural interpretation as tentative and contingent on limited mycological and archaeological data.
The authors conclude that the Selva Pascuala mural likely reflects multiple painting episodes and stylistic traditions, with Levantine animal figures at the centre and later schematic additions at the margins, including fungoid pictographs. Based on morphological comparison and habitat considerations, they tentatively identify the depicted fungi as Psilocybe hispanica and argue this supports the possibility of ritual consumption of neurotropic fungi in the region during the post‑Paleolithic era. They emphasise the provisional nature of this inference given limited mycological records, potential post‑depositional or re‑elaboration processes at the mural, and the absence of direct mid‑Holocene fungal records for the immediate locality.
Based on its combination of Levantine and Schematic elements, the Selva Pascuala mural is likely to have originated with more than one artist in successive episodes of painting activity. Its interpretation must be qualified by indications it underwent a process of re-elaboration over time. At the center of the scene, animals are dominant. There are two large bulls, one of which has almost disappeared, plus a deer and several human figures. These are rendered in Levantine style and probably trace to an earlier stage, based on their central position. Several Schematic figures appear around the edge of the mural, apparently added later and without disturbing the previous composition. Some of them, including the mushroom-like pictographs studied here, play an apparent role more typical of Levantine human figures, being placed toward the margin, around the central portion in which animal figures predominate. The fungoid figures in the mural display individual differences of form resembling the kind of morphological variation commonly observed in fruit bodies of a single species. Two of them, in the tenth and eleventh positions (counting left to right), also show a split or bifurcated base, which could lend to anthropomorphic interpretation as legs. Indeed, the figures in this row have been previously interpreted as schematized human beings. Recently proposed explanations for rock art based on ritualized trance or altered states, together with ethnographic analogies for use of Psilocybe and Amanita, suggest that the pictographs, interpreted as mushrooms, would likely represent neurotropic fungi. In consultation with Dr. Gastón Guzmán, we noted features of the 13 fruit bodies and the variations among them in light of fungal morphology and taxonomic concepts. The pictographs appear to illustrate a fungus with a convex to conic-subumbonate pileus and a straight to sinuous stipe, lacking an annulus. Accordingly and using these criteria, mycological data were reviewed to determine whether any neurotropic species occurred in the region with features matching those indicated in the mural. Amanita muscaria was excluded because of its non-sinuous stipe and large, persistent annulus. Moreover its pileus is adorned with conspicuous veil remnants, typically emphasized in artistic treatments, and notably lacking in the mural figures. We also considered the mural's combination of bovine and fungal figures raised some question of a possible habitat association. Likewise, this posed no apparent connection with A. muscaria, a mycorrhizal species. Close similarities were noted, however, between the mural pictographs and the neurotropic fungus Psilocybe hispanica Guzmán (Fig.). Known so far only from Spain, this species was described from a locale near Huesca in the Pyrenees Mountains, approximately 275 km northeast of Selva Pascuala, in the Aragon region. It is reportedly used there recreationally for its neurotropic effects, especially by young people. Its pileus is convex to subconical, closely matching the pictographs. The straight to sinuous stipes of the mural's mushrooms also agree well with those of P. hispanica. Our knowledge of this species to date is based on only three collections, so additional comparative data would be valuable. Nonetheless if the mural relates to a shamanistic context and the pictographs represent mushrooms, we consider P. hispanica a uniquely apt candidate for the likely identity of the species depicted, as proposed by Guzmán. Habitat data also correlate with the identification tentatively suggested here. Psilocybe hispanica is a coprophilic species, coinciding with the mural's association of bovine with fungal figures. This species has been collected so far only from horse dung, but coprophilic fungi present a wide range for kinds of dung they inhabit. This is well illustrated by Psilocybe cubensis (Earle) Singer, and P. coprophila (Bull.: Fr.) P. Kumm., which occur on dung of many kinds of herbivorous mammals including horse and cattle, among others. There is another neurotropic fungus in the region that might be considered in light of the mural pictographs, Psilocybe semilanceata (Fr.: Secr.) P. Kumm. This species is closely related to P. hispanica but differs in its pileus, which is acutely papillate and more narrowly conical to subcampanulate. These features point away from any relationship with the fungi depicted at Selva Pascuala. It grows only on soil rather than dung, likewise offering no specific link with the apparent bovine association in the mural. Psilocybe hispanica has been found so far only in the Pyrenees region, in alpine Pinus forests at 2,000 to 3,000 m altitude. The Selva Pascuala site lies at 1,070 m. However, it is likely that P. hispanica has a wider ecological distribution than is presently known, based on studies of other species such as P. aztecorum R. Heim emend. Guzmán. The latter was originally described from alpine Pinus forests at 3,500 m altitude, butlater found it in a non-alpine Pinus forest at 2,500 m. In view of the temporal separation between the Selva Pascuala mural and our records of Psilocybe hispanica in the present, a related question arises of climate change as a possible factor affecting distribution of this species over time. We have no mid-Holocene records for the Sierra de las Cuerdas, but several studies have been published addressing paleoclimate for medium altitude mountains in a radius of approximately 100 km around Villar del Humo. Studies indicate mature forests of Pinus species with some deciduous trees were well established. The data present no indications contrary to the likely presence of P. hispanica in the region during the era of the Selva Pascuala mural. Following shamanistic explanations of rock art, ethnographic analogies for use of Psilocybe and Amanita suggest to us that Selva Pascuala probably reflects a similar context of neurotropic fungi consumption. Our interpretation of the mural, if correct, would imply ritual usage of neurotropic fungi, especially Psilocybe hispanica, as part of the post-Paleolithic culture pattern in this region. Accordingly, Selva Pascuala presents the first direct evidence for possible utilization of Psilocybe in prehistoric Europe. Along with Pegtymel and Tassilli, the mural represents the third reported instance of rock art suggesting prehistoric usage of neurotropic fungi. Tassilli is the only site previously known that may likely represent Psilocybe. Selva Pascuala thus offers the second such example.
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