Florentine monks' coca-and-kola elixir may predate Coca-Cola

A Florentine friar has discovered a document in the pharmacy archives of an ancient convent describing a medicinal potion made from Bolivian coca leaves and kola nuts, according to the Guardian. The recipe, believed to date from the 19th century, also includes wine, and has prompted suggestions that it could be a precursor to Coca-Cola.

The document was found among the records of a convent pharmacy in Florence, a city whose religious institutions long served as centres of herbal and medicinal knowledge. The Guardian reports that the friar who unearthed it described the mixture as a fatigue-fighting elixir, a claim that resonates with the historical use of coca leaves as a stimulant in Andean traditions.

The discovery adds a Tuscan footnote to the global history of soft drinks, a story usually told through American commerce. It also highlights the region's role as a repository of botanical and pharmaceutical lore, where convent archives hold recipes that blur the line between medicine and commerce.