25 Medical Oddities On Display At The Mütter Museum
Mütter Museum of PhiladelphiaThe Mütter Museum acquired these human skulls from Viennese anatomist Joseph Hyrtl in 1874. Hyrtl’s attempt to counter phrenology claims led him to collect 139 of them.
Connoisseurs of the medical macabre have likely heard tales of the legendary Mütter Museum in Philadelphia, Pa. This world-renowned wonderland of weird is filled with anatomical oddities, pathological specimens, human curiosities, and vintage medical instruments.
Inside the creepy Mütter Museum, skeletons of all shapes and sizes reside, as well as President Grover Cleveland’s jaw tumor, deformed babies in jars, and preserved organs of all kinds. While its contents may resemble a mad scientist’s funhouse, the museum’s roots actually pay tribute to one of the most humane, respected, and talented surgeons in history.
Dr. Thomas Dent Mütter’s unique empathy as a young surgeon garnered many loyal patients. The good doctor was inclined to help even the most hopeless of cases; those with drastic disfigurements that most people considered “monsters.”
During his career, Mütter amassed a large collection of research materials, like medical oddities and anomalies. These are what first populated the museum upon its opening in 1863.
It started with 1,700 objects and the famed doctor’s donation of $30,000. The museum has since grown to more than 25,000 specimens.
There are both permanent and special exhibitions, including the Broken Bodies, Suffering Spirits: Injury, Death, and Healing in Civil War Philadelphia.
No matter the exhibit, the Mütter Museum is aware of its macabre draw but makes sure that its visitors walk away more educated than they came in. As they ask visitors themselves: “Are You Ready to Be Disturbingly Informed?”
