This conference, organised by COST Action 24164: Sensing Europe’s Court Spaces at the Crossroads of Past, Present and Future (SENSES) and Slovak University of Technology, explores the central question: How do the senses—understood as the full range of sensorial experiences—constitute the sacred at court as an active and creative process? Bringing together scholars from different disciplines, it examines how sacred space in early modern courts was produced, perceived, and transformed through inter-sensorial experience and performative practice.

Particular attention will be given to the ways ritual sought to overwhelm the senses, and how visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile, and spatial dimensions interacted to create powerful sacred atmospheres. The conference also investigates how liturgical practices at court permeated and reshaped spaces beyond the strictly defined sacred area, generating “trans-religious” environments. By considering the differing sensory experiences of various courtly audiences, participants will reflect on how the sacred was seen, heard, smelled, and embodied in distinct ways.

A concluding round table will address the methodological and epistemological challenges of studying sensory experience and sacred space within an interdisciplinary framework.

Date: 21-23 September 2026

Location: Slovak University of Technology (STU), Bratislava

Organizers: Andrea Vargová (STU), Monika Rychtáriková (KU Leuven/STU), Magdaléna Kvasnicová (STU), Vojtech Chmelík (STU)

Focusing on courtly contexts 1300–1800, the conference intends to explore the inter-sensorial performances and experiences within religious spaces of European court residences. It is explicitly conceived as forward-looking, aiming to open future avenues of research and foster shared methodological standards across disciplines. The organisers particularly encourage participation from art and architecture historians, scholars in cognitive sciences and historical cognition studies, olfactory heritage studies, digital humanities researchers, heritage specialists and curators, as well as digital designers and simulation experts. Early career researchers are strongly encouraged to apply.

Please submit:
– an abstract (max 300 words)
– a short CV (max one page)
by May 15, 2026 to krista.dejonge@kuleuven.be and joanna.olchawa@lmu.de

Participants must register with COST (free of charge). Travel and accommodation costs of accepted speakers will be reimbursed according to COST rules. Early career researchers may also apply for Short-Term Scientific Missions.

Read full CfP: https://cost-senses.eu/activities/workshop-reconstructing-sensory-experiences-of-court-spaces/