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What's that smell? New directions for materials studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 2020

Sarah Newstead  and
Tânia Manuel Casimiro
Sarah Newstead*
Affiliation:
Atlas Coal Mine National Historic Site, East Coulee, Canada
Tânia Manuel Casimiro
Affiliation:
IHC/IAP, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal
*
*Author for correspondence: ✉ [email protected]
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Abstract

‘Smellscapes’ have become an increasingly popular concept in recent years. Here, the authors argue for a new direction in sensorial archaeology by focusing on the ‘smell of things’ or the potential information held in the odours of archaeological objects. They offer a case study using early modern earthenware ceramics from Portugal—renowned for the distinctive smell and taste imparted to their contents—to explore the possibility of developing standardised analytical techniques and vocabularies that would allow archaeologists to describe the odours associated with artefacts.

Keywords

PortugalEstremozceramicsodoursmellscapessensory archaeology
Type
Research Article
Information
Antiquity , Volume 94 , Issue 377 , October 2020 , pp. 1314 - 1324
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd, 2020

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