Josephinum

  

 - darkometer rating:  5 -

 

An exhibition about medical history at one the world's foremost locations in that respect (i.e. Vienna) – augmented by a vast selection of fascinating and unique wax models for anatomical study, including some really gory ones. 

 

More background info: The medical university in Vienna is one of the oldest and most significant in the whole of medical history. Numerous breakthroughs have been achieved here; e.g. the very first stomach cancer operation (surgical removal of a tumour) by the pioneering surgeon Theodor Billroth.

 

In addition to the theoretical and practical advances of medicine, Vienna's medical department has also long been leading in its collection of specimens and medical study objects.

 

This was given a particular boost under the reign of Emperor Joseph II, a highlight of the period of enlightenment in Austria in many ways, including medical enlightenment, when the emperor personally commissioned a large number of anatomical wax models to be made for the university, apparently he paid for the enormous costs out of his own coffers – the equivalent of several million euros in today's money. He had seen some anatomical wax models in Florence – and wanted the same, only much better, for Vienna too ... and so it came to be.

 

Other cities/universities have such wax model collections as well (e.g. the Moulagenmuseum in Zurich or Palazzo Poggi in Bologna), but none can compete with Vienna as regards the sheer number of models and the range of anatomical aspects covered  – there are nearly 2000 in total, from small details, such as hands, eyes, etc., to several full-body models. The obstetrics section in particular (featuring models of deformed babies or ill-positioned ones in the womb) is virtually unique in the world.

  

The Josephinum was first opened in 1785, as part of the already much longer established Vienna medical university. From the start the anatomical wax models were the core of the institution. Initially only for medical practitioners/lecturers and students, the collection was later also made accessible to the public. In 2004, the exhibition was separated from the university and became a proper visitor attraction.

   

A decade or so later, the Josephinum was closed for a major overhaul, modernization and expansion. The reopening was delayed repeatedly, but in September 2022, towards the tail end of the Covid-19 pandemic it finally reopened. All rooms are constantly climate-controlled – an extra bonus when I finally visited the new exhibition in the heatwave of summer 2023. From that visit I can vouch that this old institution has been much improved over its already impressive predecessor and its coverage extends almost right to the present day.

 

This super special museum is a must-see not only for those interested in (the history of) medicine in its own right, but also – and especially – for those into the medical branch of dark tourism.

 

What there is to see:  While the previous exhibition space was limited to only the upper floor of the northern wing of the building, which I initially visited back in 2009. When I revisited in the summer of 2023, after the reopening in 2022, I found the new museum to occupy most of the floor space on both the ground floor and the upper floor. The facade of the building has also been cleaned up and the ivy that used to cover it has been removed. Instead of the previous side entrance in the north wing, visitors now enter through the central portal. Get your tickets from the desk in the centre of a large semi-circular room that follows the footprint of the central lecture hall above it. Then you’re free to explore.

  

On my first visit in 2009 I went on a guided tour, partly because only on such tours were the obstetrics exhibits open to the public. This is no longer the case, they are now as freely accessible as the rest of the exhibition. So there’s less of an incentive to go on a tour and I didn’t on my 2023 visit. For first-time visitors, though, an introductory guided tour may be something to consider, as guides can give you background context and bring the star exhibits to life as it were (if you can use that expression in this context).

  

On a self-guided visit you are theoretically free to see the exhibition rooms in any order you like, but it’s likely you’ll want to start right away with the main attraction: the world-famous collection of anatomical wax models. Most of them are still on the upper floor of the north wing. I was a little apprehensive with regard to how much their display may have changed though the extensive modernization. But I was pleased to find that not only have all the wax models been preserved (I believe there are actually more on display now than there were before), also the historic wood-and-glass display cabinets. The historic glass panes are not as even as modern ones so can lead to slight distortions and crooked reflections of light. But I think that is part of the “charm” of this place. Good that this hasn’t been altered.

  

The wax models themselves are gorgeous in their own specific ways, especially the larger ones. There are also countless smaller ones, of particular body parts or organs, from hands to hearts to genitals. Labelling is rather minimal, but that doesn’t detract from the visual impressions. If you want more information on what the models depict, do go on the guided tour! I had been on one before so didn’t need to repeat this.

   

I found all my favourites from my previous visit too, especially the whole-body ones. Some are reclining in oblong glass cases, including the so-called “cartilage man”, who is basically a skeleton with all cartilage still in place so he still has nose, ear as well as rib cartilage, which gives him an almost funny-creepy appearance. Some of the others have only the skin peeled back so all blood vessels and muscles are exposed. What struck me the most about these is the eyes. They look so alive. And some seem to have facial expressions – between apathy and agony.

  

Several whole-body models are standing in upright display cases. It is remarkable how many of them seem to assume poses of classical Greek statues. In fact, so I was told back in 2009, that was deliberate, partly to appease the Catholic Church (which was rather critical of the whole thing).

  

For me the absolute star amongst the whole-body exhibits is the “sleeping beauty”, a model of a pretty young woman with long blond hair and wearing a pearl necklace … just above the opened chest and abdomen exposing the lungs and inner organs. In fact she is not sleeping but has her eyes wide open – with a facial expression somewhere between resignation and boredom (but I’m probably over-interpreting).

  

The majority of wax models are on display in six halls on the upper floor of the north wing, but there is one extra separate room in the south wing. This houses the obstetrics section. In the past this was only accessible during guided tours but that restriction has been lifted with the reopening in 2022. Why this section was deemed too sensitive or gruesome for individual visits then but not any more now I simply don’t know. No explanations are given in the new exhibition.

  

Anyway, here you not only get plenty of genitalia, some sliced in half, etc., but also models of babies in the womb. A couple of models demonstrate the use of the then “popular” forceps, others show, quite graphically, some “worst-case scenarios”: babies in the wrong position for birth. Even the operation of killing and removing a baby in order to save an otherwise doomed mother's life is represented here. At this point it does indeed get rather gory. Also in that vein are the models of various deformities of babies, e.g. conjoined twins.

  

In stark contrast, some of the babies’ faces are modelled with a good dose of artistic license in a very un-baby-like fashion, with lips that look like they’re wearing lipstick and mellow expressions of ca. five-year-olds (just as you often find it in statues or paintings in churches, where baby Jesus often has a face like a mini adult). This obstetrics section, by the way, is totally unique – you won't find anything like it anywhere else.

  

Next to the obstetrics section are two more rooms on this upper floor. These are dedicated to Emperor Joseph II and his role in the enlightenment and specifically in medial reforms. Also on this floor would be the access to the historical lecture theatre, but when I visited the doors were all locked. Maybe this is only accessible on guided tours (but it wasn’t included in the tour I went on in 2009).

  

The rest of the medical exhibition, mostly without wax models, is now much expanded and housed in seven rooms/halls on the ground floor. These are thematically subdivided. Amongst the themes is one entitled “Vienna and the World”, which highlights the city’s prominent role in the history of medicine and drops several famous names involved, such as Theodor Billroth (1829-1894).

  

Another theme is “The State, Power and Medicine”, and it is here that the medical crimes of the Nazis get some coverage, in particular the forced sterilizations and abortions as well as those “euthanasia” murders of the disabled and mentally ill, especially at Spiegelgrund (there’s a whole cabinet full of now empty jars in which the brains of those killed were stored in formaldehyde and kept for “research” purposes – much later these specimens were interred at the Zentralfriedhof). War is another subject here and displays include a few more wax models, now of gruesome facial injuries soldiers sustained in WW1.

  

Yet another section is about “body imaging” and includes early endoscopes as well as a video screen showing a modern endoscopic procedure (of the stomach). The early days of X-rays are covered too and show how naïvely this was initially applied before the hazards of radiation were properly understood.

  

The rest of the exhibition is in the south wing and subdivided into “Medicine and Memory”, “Medicine and Society”, “Teaching and Research” and “Illness and Health”. These sections include all manner of medical implements, glass eyes, modern (bebionic) prosthetics, a historic skull with alleged brain regions marked on it, a collection of bladder and kidney stones, plus photos, documents and so on and so forth.

  

The most interesting section, I thought, was the (then) very contemporary coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic that started in early 2020 and at the time of writing four years later isn’t completely over yet. On display is a map from the height of the pandemic’s spread in Austria, machinery for treatment of severe cases of Covid in hospitals’ ICUs, as well as the story of the development of the new vaccines. Also covered are previous historic pandemics, such as the Spanish flu.

  

Moreover there is one room with temporary exhibitions at the end of the corridor in the south wing.

  

One item I recalled from the old exhibition that I could not find in the new one is a specimen of historical importance, namely that of a stomach cancer removal, a pioneering operation at the time undertaken by Theodor Billroth himself in 1881. What happened to it (or did I just overlook it?) I don’t know.

  

Anyway, all in all I found the revamped and expanded Josephinum exhibition excellent, easily on a par with many others of this type. But it’s the historic anatomical wax models that really set this place apart and make it world class. It may not be for everybody but for those with at least a passing interest in medicine and don’t mind the somewhat gory elements involved, this is a must-see not to be missed!

 

Location: at 25 Währinger Straße, A-1090 Vienna, in the 9th district, Alsergrund, in the university quarter, just a bit north of the central Inner City.
  
Google Maps locator: [48.2194, 16.3566]

 

Access and costs: quite easy to get to; not expensive.

 

Details: To get to the Josephinum you can walk it from the Inner City, from Schottentor on the Ring, by the old university building and the Votiv Church, walk up Währinger Str for about half a mile. Or get any of the trams that depart from the underground circle part of the Schottentor station complex (lines 37 through to 42), – the Josephinum is between the first and second stop. These lines also intersect with the No. 5 tram going past the university complex's north side. Schottentor station is also served by the U2 metro line and trams that go along this stretch of the Ring (lines 1 and D).

 

The Josephinum is a three-wing building set back from the road and fronted by a little pretty park/garden, on the western side of the street (to the left, coming from the centre). The new entrance is in the central part of the building, no longer at the north wing.

 

Opening hours: Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursdays open until 8 p.m.; closed Sundays to Tuesdays, but open on public holidays as long as they fall on a day of the regular opening times.

  

Admission: 12 EUR (regular); 8 EUR for students up to 27 years old, under 18-year-olds; pensioners over 65, as well as people with special needs and their carers; children under 12 can be taken in for free (though I wonder who would expose young children to an exhibition like this).

  

Regular guided tours (in German) take place only on Thursdays and Saturdays at 11 a.m. and last ca. one hour (advance registration required). These cost 4 euros (in addition to the admission price)

  

There are also scheduled guided tours in French and Japanese (!), taking place on Fridays at 10 a.m. (Japanese) and 12 noon (French); these tours cost 20 EUR per person, inclusive of admission. Advance booking is also required for these tours.

  

Tours are theoretically also available in English, but these have to be specially arranged and cost 80 EUR for up to 25 participants within the regular opening times; outside of the normal times the price jumps up to 120 EUR per group.

  

You can book or request tours by emailing this address: info[at]josephinum.ac.at.

 

Time required: depending on the depth of your interest in all things medical, between one hour and several hours (I saw some young visitors, presumably students, spending long periods of time at every single exhibit).

 

Combinations with other dark destinations: The Narrenturm pathological museum does not only fit in with the Josephinum thematically, it's also just round the corner, as it were. .   

  

In general see Vienna.

  

 

Combinations with non-dark destinations: The Josephinum is not in the most touristy part of Vienna (it’s located in the main university quarter), but the central First District is not far away.

  

See under Vienna in general.