Melbourne: Scientists may have solved a 2000-year-old puzzle of what led to the untimely and mysterious death of Macedonian leader Alexander the Great at the young age of 32.
Dr Leo Schep from Otago University`s National Poisons Centre believes a poisonous wine made from an innocuous-looking plant may have killed Alexander, who built a massive empire before his death in 323 BC.
Some historians believe that Alexander`s death was due to natural causes, while others maintain he was secretly murdered at a celebratory banquet.
Schep, who has been researching the toxicological evidence for 10 years, said some of the poisoning theories - including arsenic and strychnine - were laughable.
The study, co-authored by classics expert Dr Pat Wheatley, found the most plausible culprit was Veratrum album, known as white hellebore, the `New Zealand Herald` reported.
Researchers said the white-flowered plant, which can be fermented into a poisonous wine, was well-known to the Greeks as a herbal treatment for inducing vomiting.
They believe it could have accounted for the 12 torturous days that Alexander took to die, speechless and unable to walk.
Other suggested poisons, according to the researchers, would likely have killed him far more quickly.
Schep began looking into the mystery in 2003 when he was approached by a company working on a BBC documentary.
"They asked me to look into it for them and I said, `Oh yeah, I`ll give it a go, I like a challenge` - thinking I wasn`t going to find anything. And to my utter surprise, and their surprise, we found something that could fit the bill," said Schep.
Schep`s theory is that Veratrum album could have been fermented as a wine that was given to the leader.
Alexander, who was likely to have been very drunk at the banquet, would have tasted the "very bitter" Veratrum album possibly sweetened with wine.
Researchers said, however, whether Alexander was poisoned still remains a mystery.
The study was published in the journal Clinical Toxicology.
