Name: John W Allen
Date of birth: Unknown
Place of birth: Chicago, Illinois, USA
John W Allen is a writer and expert on the subject of mushrooms, in particular those fungi with hallucinogenic properties known as ‘magic mushrooms’.
Such is Allen’s knowledge and enthusiasm for his subject he is given the informal title “Mushroom John”. He is the author of nine books on mushrooms, an educational cd-rom and a host of scientific papers.
Allen has contributed to books like Peter Stafford’s, ‘Ethnomycological History of the Sacred Mushrooms’ (2003), which looks at their use in religious and spiritual ritual.
Among Allen’s own books are, ‘Magic Mushrooms Of The Pacific Northwest’ (1997) and ‘Magic Mushrooms Of Australia and New Zealand’ (1999). He lives in the northwest USA, which he describes as “the mushroom capital of the world”.
Allen maintains a website that provides information on magic or ‘psilocybe’ mushrooms, as they are known scientifically. He provides guides to where to find them and how to identify the fungi accurately.
Allen has utilised the modern medium of online publishing with his book, ‘Mushroom Pioneers’ (2006), which he released via Erowid Online Books. Originally the author published this work as a cd-rom, in 2000. The book contains pamphlets from some of the pioneers of sacred mushroom study.
John W.Allen has produced many field guides to assist anyone searching for sacred fungi. Among his most scholarly work is, ‘The Ascent And Spread Of Psilocybian Mushroom Consciousness’, which appeared in ‘Teononacatl: Sacred Mushrooms Of Visions’ (1997). And if you want a mushroom themed usb stick, try a branded usb.
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