Sensory Engagement in Historical Archaeology

Part of: Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

Participants explore sensory approaches in historical archaeology, considering methods and approaches that afford insight into sensory experience in the past as well as the outcomes of archaeological engagement with the senses. Contributors probe the relationship between human activities, the senses, and the formation of identities in a wide range of early modern and modern locales and cultures in Finland, Sweden, Iceland, New England, and Panama, examining issues such as mourning rituals and other strategies for coping with death, acoustic and aromatic pleasures and intrusions, self-care, embodiment, fantasy play and domesticity in the brothel, the construction of identity through food preferences and avoidances, varied experiences of dining and mealtimes, and memorialization of victims of human trafficking through the reconstruction of the soundscapes of the Atlantic slave trade. The session concludes with an interactive panel and open discussion of how sensorial approaches enrich archaeological interpretations of historical lives and interactions.