Despite the apparent rarity of organic remains in archaeology, textiles were an omnipresent type of material in past societies, and in funerary contexts especially, textiles played a prominent role. This is well illustrated in modern practices across the globe, but rarely the focus of archaeological enquiries. The present chapter aims to introduce a collective volume exploring different roles and study approaches to funerary textiles, by bringing together a highly specialized team of experts from the fields of bio-archaeology and textile research, including archaeologists, anthropologists, and conservators. Our geographical focus is the ancient Nile Valley and Europe; two regions that offer very diverse climatic and environmental conditions. We also cover a long historical period, from prehistory to early modern times. This introduction will first discuss the potentials and limitations of working with legacy collections of funerary textiles stored in museums, using the case of a Late Antique grave from Lower Nubia (Debeira 350/II, excavated in the 1960s by the Scandinavian Joint Expedition). The paper will then review the developments of research on funerary textiles and highlight current methods in different environmental conditions, going from wrapped inhumations with no textiles preserved all the way to intact funerary assemblages.