Hashish color

There is no evidence that the ancient Israelites ever knew of the plant, although several attempts have been made to prove that they did. Because the Arabs sometimes referred to hashish as grass, some writers have argued that the "grass" eaten by Nebuchadnezzar was actually hashish. Another contention is that the phantasmagoria of composite creatures and brilliant colors seen by Ezekiel are unintelligible except from the standpoint of hashish intoxication. 

Little is known of the first Arab who discovered the marvellous properties of hashish. There is no shortage of legends, however, to fill in the dark, long-forgotten memories of that eventful moment. One of the most colorful of these stories tells how Haydar, the Persian founder of a religious order of Sufis, discovered hashish in A.D. 1155. 

In recent times, another cannabis preparation, "Hash oil," has hit the streets of many cities. It is nearly always really super-concentrated, genuine hashish suspended in a clear or colored alcohol solution, and sold for a small fortune. Every once in a great while some neophyte dealer will sell it as "THC," and this should not be confused with the PCP ripoff described above, which is nearly, always powder in a capsule, or a solid tablet. 

Hashish deteriorates with time. In India it is stored only for about three years. After that, it loses its dark brown or greenish color and resinous quality, becoming brownish-grey, hard and crumbly. This loss of potency is due to oxidation the center of a chunk will remain potent longer than the outside. Raphael... 

Fig. 21. Thin layer chromatogram of marijuana extract. A is from marijuana B is from hashish and C is from the hand of a marijuana smoker. Small spots of the extracts are placed on the base line, the solvent rises by capillary action from the bottom to the top carrying the compounds with it at varying rates. After drying, the plate is sprayed with a color-developing reagent and the spots identified by comparing with standards.

A. Caldas, Chemical Identification of Cannabis," Analytica Chimica Acta 49 (1970) 194 Z.I. El-Darawy et al., Studies on Hashish IV Color Reactions of Cannabinols, Qualitas Plantarum Materiales Vege-tabilis 22 (1972) 7 Anon, Methods for the Identification of Cannabis," United Nations Secretariat Document ST/SOA/Ser. S/1 H.M. Stone, An Investigation into Forensic Chemical Problems Associated with Cannabis, United Nations Secretariat Document ST/SOA/Ser. ... 

Studies on Hashish IV Color Reactions of Cannabinols. Qualitas... 

In the optimized rapid method 5 mg of hashish or 50 mg of marijuana is extracted with light petroleum-diethyl ether (4 1 v/v). The extract is evaporated to dryness, the residue dissolved in 0.5 ml of 1% 4-dimethyl-aminobenzaldehyde in concentrated H2SO4 and the solution is heated for 3 min in a water bath. A purple-red color is produced immediately, turning to indigo blue on pouring the mixture into cold water. This dual color reaction is specific for extracts of hashish and marijuana and can be used to distinguish them from other plant extracts. 

The analysis of materials suspected to be or to contain controlled substances represents the largest portion of the workload in most forensic laboratories. When suspected controlled substances are submitted as physical evidence (exhibits), the forensic chemist must identify and, in some cases, quantify the controlled substances present. The most common forms of drug evidence seen can be summarized as the "five P s" powders, plant matter, pills, precursors, and paraphernalia. Powders include colored powders from crystalline white to resinous brown, and many, such as heroin and cocaine, are derived directly or indirectly from plants. Many powders are oily and odiferous, while some can be described (unofficially and informally) as goo. Hashish, a concentrated form of marijuana, lies between plant and powder. Typical plant matter exhibits are marijuana, mushrooms, and cactus buttons. As biological evidence, plant matter must be stored properly to prevent rotting and degradation prior to analysis failure to do so can generate the aforementioned goo. 

Cannabis usually comes in three forms (1) cannabis (marijuana), (2) cannabis resin (hashish), and (3) extracts of cannabis resin (hashish oil). Most laboratories use a color test (modified Duquenois-Levine), a morphological examination... 

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