Museum Month: Mütter Museum In Philadelphia

by Libby Zay on

The Mütter Museum is not for the squeamish. Brimming with medical oddities, pathological specimens and antique medical equipment, it’s where you’ll find a book bound in human flesh, dried severed hands, a two-headed baby in formaldehyde, Albert Einstein’s brain and a collection of objects that have been swallowed and removed. There’s also a nine-foot-long human colon that contained 40 pounds of fecal matter (it was once part of a sideshow act called “the Human Balloon”) and the body of “the Soap Lady,” whose corpse turned itself into a soapy substance because of the chemical properties of the soil she was buried in. Visitors can “ooh” and “ahh” at a collection of 139 human skulls in neat rows, or check out the tallest human skeleton on display in North America, which stands tall at 7.5 feet right next to the skeleton of a dwarf.

Dr. Thomas Dent Mütter originally began collecting these strange items, which were donated to The College of Physicians of Philadelphia in 1858 for the purpose of medical research and education. To this day, the museum exists with that goal in mind – as well as for the shear purpose of shocking and amazing the general public. As the collection has grown, there are now over 20,000 items on display in jars and cases around the museum. Check out the museum’s YouTube station to be introduced to some of the curiosities of the exhibits.

Museum Month: Brush Up On Hawaiian History at Maui’s Hale Pa’i Museum

by Kyle Ellison on

“My Kingdom will be a land of literacy”, Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III), 1813

If you didn’t know that Hawaii at one point had it’s own currency, that’s ok, neither did I. It was called the “Dala“, and the exchange rate was pegged to the US dollar from which it took its name.

Did you know that for a six-month period of its history Hawaii was officially and illegally occupied by the British? Overthrown in February, 1843, the eventual nullification of the takeover by the British Crown would prompt King Kamehameha III to utter the phrase which now stands as the Hawaii state motto: Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono. The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness.

Looking for more Hawaiian history? At Maui’s Lahainaluna High School–itself the oldest public school in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains–the restored stone museum known as Hale Pa’i (The Printing House) offers visitors a fascinating window into the history of 19th century Hawaii.

When Western explorers arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in the late 1700’s they found a native populace with no system of reading or writing. Instead, through the use of chant, song, and dance such as hula, native Hawaiian stories were passed orally down through the generations.

All of this changed, however, when American missionaries in 1821 decided to formulate an alphabet for the Hawaiian language. Using the naturally occurring sounds of the language, an original alphabet of 17 letters was penned down on paper before ultimately being shaved down to the current alphabet of only five vowels and seven consonants.

%Gallery-155281%With an alphabet now firmly in place, missionaries next took to the task of converting the Hawaiians to Christianity via scripture translated into the printed Hawaiian word. As it happens, much of this initial printing would take place in Lahaina at Hale Pa’i.

Using a printing press shipped over from the neighboring island of Oahu, the press housed at Hale Pa’i would not only be the first press to grace the island of Maui, but also churn out the first newspaper to exist west of the Rocky Mountains–Ka Lama Hawaii, a Hawaiian language periodical with an initial circulation of 25 copies in 1834.

In addition to newspapers and books (namely the Bible, the Hawaiian translation of which is said to be the thickest Bible ever printed), the printed Hawaiian alphabet now gave the ruling Hawaiian monarchy a means of establishing a written constitution and instituting written laws.

The voracious demand for the printed word which ensued soon after the introduction of the printing press prompted builders to swap the original thatched roof of Hale Pa’i for a permanent structure which would endure as a house of literature for generations to come.

Operated by the Lahaina Restoration Foundation, the museum also houses cultural artifacts from Ancient Hawaii and documents detailing specific events in Hawaii’s recent yet captivating history.

Hale Pa’i Museum is open Monday-Friday from 10am-4pm on the campus of Maui’s Lahainaluna High School.

Museum Month: The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum In Washington, DC

by Melanie Renzulli on




Consider for a moment the events of 1625.

Dutch settlers in North America established the city of New Amsterdam, which would become, of course, New York City. Theaters throughout London closed for eight months due to an epidemic of bubonic plague. And somewhere in a studio or garden in Japan, a bonsai artist began training a Japanese White Pine, the very tree that would become the centerpiece of the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum in Washington, DC.

In 1976, thanks to Japan and its Bicentennial gift to the United States, the Department of Agriculture created the first museum in the world dedicated to the display of Japanese (bonsai) and Chinese (penjing) horticultural art. The National Bonsai & Penjing Museum now contains three pavilions – Chinese, Japanese and North American – with approximately 150 living sculptures interspersed with viewing stones (naturally shaped rocks that are the typical companions of bonsai) and strolling paths.

All manner of trees, from trident maples to California junipers are on view in miniature form in the museum. Highlights include a tree trained into the shape of a dragon; “Goshin,” an artistic tree arrangement in the “forest style;” a shrunken, flat-topped Bald Cypress from the swamps of the American South; and the almost 400-year-old bonsai pine that is approximately the size of a front yard shrub. But what makes this museum a treat is its tranquility, a quality that is increasingly hard to find inside the Beltway. If you’re looking for a moment of Zen, here’s where to find it.

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Museum Month: Madness And Badness At Psychiatric And Crime Museums

by Laurel Miller on

It’s no secret amongst my friends (and I suspect, most of my readers) that I’m obsessed with the more sordid aspects of humanity. Why? Hell if I know. As with most things, I blame my dad, the veterinarian. I’m pretty sure a childhood spent playing necropsy assistant has something to do with it.

My love of forensics is only the tip of the iceberg: psychiatry, taxidermy, eating weird shit and serial killers also make my list of fun things to read about or watch documentaries on when it’s time to relax. I know – I’m a total freak.

Obviously, I’m not alone (do a quick Google search of “forensic television shows” and you’ll see what I mean). There are also scads of museums and the like devoted to the seamier side of life, all across the U.S. My picks, after the jump.

P.S. If you find this reprehensible yet you’ve read this far, well, that makes you a bit of a voyeur, as well. Embrace it, and click away.Glore Psychiatric Museum
A part of the St. Joseph Museum located in St. Joseph, Missouri, the Glore was once housed in “State Lunatic Asylum No. 2.” Founded by George Glore in 1903, the museum is essentially a history of the treatment of mental illness (including keepsakes from patients that include “items ingested” and contemporary artwork). There are also interactive exhibits, replicas and documents. Expect to see everything from lobotomy instruments to treatments for patients “possessed” by witchcraft or demons.

Glore worked for the Missouri Department of Mental Health for nearly 41 years, and despite the thematic content, his museum contains what’s considered the largest and most well curated exhibition of mental health care in the U.S. According to its website, Glore’s goal was to “reduce the stigma associated with psychiatric treatment for patients, their families and their communities.”

The Glore Psychiatric Museum is located at 3408 Frederick Avenue, and is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sundays 1 to 5 p.m. – closed on major holidays.

The National Museum of Crime and Punishment
Washington, D.C.‘s “Crime Museum” opened in the Penn Quarter neighborhood in 2008, and boasts 28,000 square feet packed with artifacts, interactive exhibits, including an FBI shooting range and high-speed police chase simulator, and forensic techniques ranging from ballistics analysis to facial reconstruction. There are also historical exhibits focused on colonial crime, pirates, the Wild West, the Mafia and serial killers, and law enforcement uniforms, firearms and other equipment.

Other educational offerings include public forensic workshops, CSI summer camps for teens (it’s never too early to become the next Marg Helgenberger, kids) and rotating exhibits. Don’t forget your night vision goggles.

The Crime Museum is located at 575 7th Street NW, Washington D.C, and is open seven days a week. Hours vary by season. Click here for details. If you’re traveling by Metro, take the Green, Yellow or Red lines, and get off at the Gallery Place/Chinatown station.

[Photo credits: Michael Myers, Flickr user Chepe Leña; Crime Museum, Wikipedia Commons]

Museum Month: The Museum Of Bad Art In Boston, Massachusetts

by Jessica Festa on

Everywhere you travel, you’ll find countless art museums dedicated to contemporary art, modern art, fine art and period-focused art; however, when do you ever get to visit a museum devoted to bad art? The Museum Of Bad Art (MOBA), a community-based, private institution, is “dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition and celebration of bad art in all its form and in all its glory.”

At MOBA, you’ll find the “best” pieces of art that are not up to the usual aesthetic standard most museum-goers are accustomed to. This may be an oxymoron, but it’s a great place to admire creative works without having to be an art connoisseur. You’ll be able to relax and have fun while admiring pieces from categories like “unlikely landscapes, seascapes, and still lifes,” “in the nood,” “poor traits” and “blue people.” Each piece comes with a funny and informative description. While some of the works aren’t too terrible, there are others that will have you wondering what the artist could have possibly been thinking.

Admission to the museum is free. MOBA has three locations near Boston, Massachusetts, including the Dedham Community Theatre, the Somerville Theatre and the Brookline Access Television. Click here for directions and maps.