Tobacco use Among south Texas hunter-gatherers

Despite the large collection of tubular stone pipes from South Texas, the residues have not been previously tested to determine the presence of nicotine, the biomarker for tobacco ( Nicotiana spp.). This study analyzed residue found inside tubular stone pipes from multiple contexts to determine if they were used to smoke tobacco. Multiple residue collection techniques were utilized, ranging from manual to chemical extraction. The residue samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to detect nicotine. A total of 34 pipes were recorded, and of those, 13 contained residues that were collected, all of which yielded evidence of nicotine. These results demonstrate that tobacco use was likely far more prevalent among the hunter-gatherers of South Texas than previously discussed in the archaeological literature.