The History of Smells: Nostalgia and the scent of the past Will Tullett
Event details
What smells have made us who we are? Which scents might we wish to preserve for posterity?
When we think about the history of smell, one response is to assume that the past simply smelled bad. But another is to reach for the smells of our own pasts - the nostalgic fragrances of our childhoods or our hometowns.
Historian Will Tullett explores the smells that 20th-century British people valued, sought to preserve and which helped them to make sense of their worlds. From the mixed perfumes of village shops and grocers to the distinctive scent of coal-powered steam-trains or horse dung, Will shows how the perception of the past as ’smelly’ is really the product of some very recent transformations in our daily environments.
‘The History of Smells: Nostalgia and the scent of the past’ is one of a number of events taking place as part of a special edition of YorkTalks. Celebrating University of York’s research at its best, we invite you to explore a dynamic landscape of curated talks, live performances and hands-on activities staged in the historic Heslington Hall and its grounds on the theme Heritage Reframed.
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons/Boston Public Library
.jpg){kind=link}
About the speaker
Dr Will Tullett is a Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History at the University of York and an internationally recognised expert on the history of smell. He has published two books on the subject and his third book, Sniff: A History of Smells is to be published by Yale University Press on 8 September 2026.
Partners
