In recent years, millions of people around the world have suffered from loss of smell due to COVID-19. Even those who have avoided infection with the new coronavirus now experience the world of smells differently due to the very masks that provide protection against the virus. This loss of smell has highlighted the important role that smell plays in how we perceive and navigate the world, and has underscored the connections between smell and mental and physical health.
Smell has always been an integral component of the human experience, but until now the past has largely remained odourless. Most odors come from organic substances that decompose quickly, leaving little for archaeologists to investigate thousands of years later. Now, a team of researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History is looking for new ways to revive ancient olfactory landscapes and use smell to study past experience, behavior and society.
Tracing the smell in the deep past is not an easy task , says Barbara Huber, lead author of the paper, but the fact that history records expeditions of discovery, wars and long-distance exchanges to acquire materials with strong olfactory properties -such as incense and spices- reveals how important has been the smell for humanity .
Understanding the sensory dimension of human history and the use of odorous and aromatic substances can provide insights into many aspects of the past, such as rituals, perfumery, hygiene, cooking, trade and exchange. But since smell is part of the way we experience, understand, and navigate the world, ancient smells can also provide information about broader aspects of the past, from hierarchy and social practices to group identity.
Smell is a powerful and undervalued aspect of the human experience , says Professor Nicole Boivin, lead author of the study and director of the Department of Archeology at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. Odors reach our brain quite directly and motivate us in a decisive way, whether it is to avoid danger, identify something that is good for us or remember something from our past, for example .
Using only the traces of perfumed substances preserved in artifacts and archaeological elements , adds Huber, new methods are revealing the powerful odors that were a fundamental feature of ancient lived realities and that shaped human action, thoughts, emotions and memories .
By harnessing powerful new biomolecular and omics approaches, such as proteomics and metabolomics techniques, and linking the new data with information from ancient texts, visual representations, and broader archaeological and environmental records, researchers can open up new aspects of the ancient world, our changing societies and cultures, and our evolution as a species .
The authors of the new article hope that further research into the rich olfactory landscapes from the past provides an insight into the sensory worlds of yesteryear and the various ways in which people have captured the scents of nature to shape the human experience.