There is no history of humanity without a concurrent narrative of death and destruction. Indeed, the stories that survive from Justinian Plague of the Byzantine Empire, the Black Death, and the Great Plagues of the 17th century are testaments to humanity's struggle with unprecedented, unexpected destruction. And yet, where there is great fear, there is great inventiveness. Many resourceful would-be healers made heavy use of aromatics as plague preservatives, in some way triggering a societal obsession with scent. Nuri joins us for a historical look at how scent has played into perceptions of wellness, in this first part of a two part exploration of smell and public health.

Takeaways:

• Learn how Medieval Europe and the Middle East viewed the concepts of wellness, disease, and the power of olfaction
• Understand the changing views on Miasma during the Medieval period and how it fueled an explosion of aromatic products meant to ward off illness
• Learn what everyday perfumed items you have in your home that have their roots in plague preservatives
• Identify the medical origins of aromatics associated with plague preservatives and how those scents became the olfactive reference point for physical and spiritual cleanliness in the Europe context.

This is the first part in a two part series by Nuri McBride. Learn more and get tickets to Part 2, Bad Air: Smells, Miasma Theory, and Public Health, with Nuri McBride here. Please note that classes can be taken individually or in combination.

This is an online class. The Zoom link will be sent by email 24 hours before the class.

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ABOUT NURI MCBRIDE

Nuri McBride is an academic, activist, writer, and perfumer focused primarily on the preservation of olfactive cultural heritage. Her main area of interest is in the importance of aromatics in life-cycle rituals, particularly surrounding death and dying. This interest grew out of Nuri's personal work in end of life care and witnessing the emotional power scent can hold for the bereaved. In 2015, she began the Death/Scent project to explore the use of aromatics in death practices around the world. Nuri is a long time advocate for greater death awareness education and an end to funeral poverty. She also incorporates scent in her guided death meditation classes as a profound way to connect the participants to the physical, intellectual, and emotional state of examining their mortality.

Links: Website / Twitter / Instagram / Facebook

Photo credits: IAO / Wellcome Collection / Michael Geiger on Unsplash