During thc past decades we have seen enormous progress in research on the history, chemistry, botany, and cultural imponance of coca. Unfortunately, most of these studies have been overshadowed by a much greater profusion of studies on the pharmacology and chemistry of cocaine and on its physiological and psychological effects. lt is my purpose here to present an overview of the botany, chemistry, and uses of coca by South American natives and to review pertinent research on coca which has appeared since approximately 1970. Areas of particular interest include recent studies on the botanical origins of coca, which until the 1970's remained muddled and misunderstood even by taxonomic botanists: on the archeological record of coca, which, although rather scanty, had been largely misinterpreted by archcologists: and on the chemistry of the coca leaf, which had not yet been adequately analyzed because of earlier technical problems in making efficient extractions and quantitative measurements of the contained compounds. Then, it has also been renewed interest in the effects of coca chewing, but we still know relatively little about the subtile and complex pharmacology of the experience. Lastly, there has been an effort on the pan of anthropologists to document more completely the religious and cultural aspccts of coca in traditional cultures.