THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENSORY ARCHAEOLOGY TO CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN PREHISTORY
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 16/02/2021

Sensory archaeology has now become an accepted part of archaeological method and theory, characterised by a well-grounded set of key concepts and debates and by a healthy diversity of perspectives. Bringing together the culturally diverse sensory assemblages and impacts of artefacts, human burials, buildings and landscapes, and their associated politics, a growing number of archaeological case studies has persuasively emphasised the remarkable variety of ways in which we make sense of the world around us, especially as members of societies and cultures with particular sensory orders and dynamics. Such studies have also reflected on our own particular ways of seeing and sensing, including the biases and misrepresentations of archaeological museums and heritage sites, which have tended until recently to deny all but the sense of sight. This paper argues that, for Central Mediterranean prehistoric archaeology, there remains plenty of scope to put into practice new sensory studies: an undertaking whose apparently risky and experimental nature is mitigated by incorporating sensoriality into the full range of existing archaeological methods.


Author(s): Skeates, Robin (Durham University)