Preserving the Unpleasant: Sources, Methods, and Conjectures for Odors at Historic Sites

This article seeks to re-odor historic sites by offering an overview of the sources and methods that historians have been using to understand smells and olfaction in the past. In addition, it argues that preservationists must consider both material odors and the historic perception of those smells, which differs from contemporary audience’s perceptions of the same scents. It will not be enough for preservationists to recreate historic odors; they must explain how people in the past understood and reacted to these aromas, and find ways to engage visitors who react with disgust to a past that smells differently from the present.