Member describing old article's distinctive smell (5)
I believe the answer is:
aroma
'distinctive smell' is the definition.
(an aroma is a strong smell)
'member describing old article's' is the wordplay.
'member' becomes 'arm' (member can mean a limb).
'describing' is an insertion indicator (describe can mean to form the outline of).
'old' becomes 'o' (common abbreviation eg in OE for Old English).
'article' becomes 'a' (the indefinite article in English).
'arm' placed around 'o' is 'arom'.
'arom'+'a'='AROMA'
(Other definitions for aroma that I've seen before include "Spicy fragrance" , "Bouquet" , "Fragrance of spices" , "Stink" , "Food fragrance" .)