Editorial: Sensory archaeology

Frontispiece 1. Sensory affect: a field archaeologist holds a group of glass bracelets discovered during rescue excavations at the medieval site of Apostolshchyna in western Ukraine.The site lies within the territory of the princely town of Volodymyr, which was violently sacked during the Mongol-Tatar campaign led by Batu Khan in 1241 CE.The objects belong to a cache of 573 intact ancient Rus glass bracelets, possibly hidden during that catastrophe.The bracelets vary in form-twisted, smooth and trapezoidal-and appear in a striking palette of colours, including deep greens, blues, violets, yellows and shimmering gold.They were found alongside dozens of precious items, including bronze and marble pendant crosses, associated with elite religious and mercantile life.Their scientific study offers the opportunity to deepen understandings of medieval glass production, exchange networks and consumer culture.Their proposed museum display also has the potential to represent their multisensory properties and sensorial cultural context.