The Perfumed Palate: Olfactory Practices of Food Consumption at the Mughal Court

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article considers the centrality of smells, both fragrant and fetid, to food practices at the Mughal court. Mughal-era manuscripts and paintings frequently reference the smells of spices, fruits, and flowers in the context of food preparation as well as consumption. They describe, too, the widespread use of aromatics derived from animals, especially ambergris and musk. The article explores how incorporation of these odoriferous substances in food dishes and dining spaces was envisaged as an ethical endeavor for fashioning of the Mughal elite as civilized, healthy, and spiritually refined gentlemen.