Sport history as modes of expression: material culture and cultural spaces in sport and history Introductory Essay

This themed issue explores how material culture directly influences the interpretation of sport and history, with an emphasis on various ways the sporting body expresses values, beliefs, ideals and attitudes in the past. Artifacts, the built environment and cultural spaces in sport form a significant element in the approaches to understanding historical experiences in the scholarly essays in this volume. Material culture, the human imprint on the environment, cultural landscapes and waterscapes illuminate sport history over time and in diverse contexts. The importance of artifacts, cultural spaces and the body, as depicted in these essays, show that material culture matters in interpreting the sporting past.