Fabulously, morbidly, but intensely interesting! I absolutely loved this museum. A collection of history's oddities and medical developments displayed in several glass cases. Fetal skeletons, dried body parts, outdated surgical tools, kidney stones, skulls with various injuries and maladies, Lister's first attempts at antisepsis in surgical procedures, the list goes on! If I walked away with any knowledge from this 5th floor museum, its that I wouldn't want surgery in the past. Barbaric tools and almost-guaranteed death from surgical infection. Oh. . . and I would have never wanted to be a guy with a kidney stone in those days. . . come to the museum and you'll see why! ::shudders:: As a nurse, this museum was fascinating. To see the evolution of the instruments and the discoveries made along the way gave me new appreciation for how far medicine has come. I highly recommend this museum for the "not-faint-at-heart". Wish it were bigger! NOTE: This museum is absolutely FREE of charge. Located in the Countway Library of Medicine's Center for the History of Medicine, all you need is a photo ID and to check in at the Library's front desk! read more

Warren Anatomical Museum - Countway Library 5th Floor - Museums Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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Although it is called a "museum" it is really a few glass cases nk the fifth floor of the Harvard Medical Library. To get in you need to show a photo ID and sign in with the guard at the front desk. Though it is a small exhibit it is well worth a visit - very interesting specimens, instruments and photos are on display outlining a bit of the history of medicine, with one case in particular giving an emphasis on the abnormal. read more

Its not easy to get to. Its super small. But with some time and patience, it was a cool 15 minutes. They have a good panel on Phineas Gage, as well as some other cool skulls and tools. In no way is this place like the Mutter Museum, or even the National Museum of Health & Medicine close to Washington DC. In short, come here only if you have time, dont mind trying to find the place, and dont have to go out of your way. read more

If you're going to the MFA, Phineas Gage's skull is on display just a few minutes away! The Countway Library is a little intimidating - it's open to the public until 5 pm, but you'll need to sign in with the guard. Take the elevator to the 5th floor, and there, in cases around the central walkway, are all kinds of medical oddities, both icky and educational, including really primitive forceps, mummified deformed limbs, and best of all, both Phineas Gage's skull and the tamping rod that pierced it! The latter was completely different than I expected, even though I've read a lot about Gage's case - I won't ruin it for you. Bonus: you'll be the only one there, although one of the curators did come out and give me a cookie. So, if you're in the neighborhood and have 20 minutes or so to be edified and grossed out, definitely stop in. read more

Warren Anatomical Museum - Museums Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

3.5 stars... This is NOT a museum whatsoever. It's 4 glass display cases (two large, two small) on the 5th floor of an academic building on the Harvard Medical campus. You have to sign in and show ID to get into the building and they tell you not to take photos (no one's on the 5th floor to stop you though). Despite my disappointment that this wasn't a museum, the exhibit was very interesting none the less. They have some historic pieces of medical equipment, photographs, teaching aids, and some bizarre biological pieces (like fetus skeletons and bones with musket balls embedded into them). Definitely worth checking out if you're into this kind of stuff, just don't travel too far for this place thinking it's a large museum. read more

This place is super small so if you're looking for a sizable museum you can spend a few hours in (like the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia) then skip this because it's more of a pitstop for those fascinated with medical anomalies than anything else. It's housed in a corridor of Harvard Medical School's Countway Library so you'll have to show your ID then go up to the 5th floor and then peruse the cases that line the walls (there are only a few). That being said, I did like what I saw here. The placards were informative, and the specimens were interesting. Luckily, not far from here is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum so I made a day out of visiting these two places. But I would not recommend going out of your way just to see this place. It's free, but super small, and will hardly consume an hour even with reading everything. read more

This place is weird! Why on earth would anybody collect bladder stones, or antiquated instruments to remove them? On my first visit to the Museum I was harassed by the library doorman/guard who was weird, first he told me the museum was closed (which it wasn't) then he spent about ten minutes trying to persuade me to give him $10 for entry... He wasn't doing it in a funny playful way...It was really strange, but it simply added to the experience. The Museum is not all that large, but the collection of ....things is definitely one of a kind. Some of the things are definitely enough to turn ones stomach, so perhaps don't plan on eating directly before or after unless oil paintings of rotting limbs gets you appetite going! Anyhow the collection is amazing, and its FREE, so why not eh? read more

Holy Crap, I loved this place! I first heard about it on a website pertaining to "strange Boston" and we made the trek. It was a bit confusing following my phone GPS and heading down the alleyway past ambulances and doctors/nurses in their garb. We kept looking at the addresses and walked the alley until the end and then realized the museum was INSIDE the Harvard Medical Library - ohhh.. you walk in, sign in and I felt a little like the ghoul I am as the security guard looked at us a bit suspiciously ESPECIALLY since we do NOT look like med students. Once past the guard and up to the 5th floor, we were fascinated by the displays of skeletons with rickets, the kidney stone collections, civil war surgical tools, skulls, fetal skeletons and the like. Awesome old medical photographs from the late 1800's and the first ether mask. I was so bummed that no photography was allowed as I would've loved to document this place. One of the BEST free museums I've ever been to, hands down. The tools kinda creeped Marcel out a bit but I have to say it was like looking in a candy store for me! A simply amazing collection of curiosities to see! read more

So cool. Very scientific presentation of some medical anomalies. This is a permanent exhibit in the Harvard Medical Library. Tricky to find so ask directions. read more

Warren Anatomical Museum - Museums Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

booooooooooooooooooo bOooooOoooOoOOOOOO! there's like two cool things as opposed to most museums which have an average of twenty or more cool things (at that point, to count them is redundant). This is why i did not enjoy the harvard medical library anatomical museum. notably, there were several haunted portraits completely lacking the spice and intrigue a haunted portrait should have. second, as the author stated previously, there were not enough cool things (main idea). and finally it is so small i could not host a birthday party there. in conclusion, i give the harvard medicine body library a one star. read more

When I first found this place online, I was pretty stoked. I thought this would be a wondrous museum filled with all sorts of anatomical collections. Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed with the size of the collection. After finding my way to the library, I found myself amazed and humbled by the collection of Phineas Gage's skull as well as other samples of odd anatomy. Although, it wasn't so much of a museum as a small exhibit of a unique collection. I really wish there was more to see! read more

Anyone interested in medicine should stop by here. Back in the days before the internets and glossy 11x14 atlases of human anatomy and skeletons and pathological specimens, doctors had to be old school and well, preserve weird shit they saw in the field. Not only do they have the skull of Phineas Gage, but they have a lot of ridiculously creepy crap. From what I remember, I saw... unique skeletons! a really odd assortment of medical tools like bone saws and uhh....yeah i don't wanna ruin it but "crazy ass foreceps" works weird crap that shouldn't be in your body but occured anyways! Definitely worth a visit if you're a medical professional or hell, interested in science with a bit of history. read more

This exhibit is so interesting and strange, if you are interested in the creepiness of medical standards of the past or the crazy deformations possible in the human body you need to go here. The other reviewers give pretty complete lists of what you can expect to see so I won't go into much detail. I only took off one star because I expected this to be a complete museum, but really it's just 4 little displays on one floor of a library. Don't get me wrong, they absolutely PACKED those displays with amazingly morbid and incredibly interesting things, but don't think you're going to a full museum, Warren Anatomical Exibit might be a better name. SO cool, go spend an hour or two having your mind blown! read more

Small collection of artifacts and documents in display cases at the Harvard Medical School library. The anatomical specimens are for the most part run of the mill with the notable exception of Phineas Gage's skull (along with the heavy iron bar that was blown through his head in a construction accident). He survived the injury, but his personality changed markedly for the worse as a result of the brain damage. Another interesting component of the exhibit is the history of early anesthesiology in Boston. There's an early ether administration device and other related items on display. If you're interested in the history of medicine, it's worth a visit. read more

I wouldn't exactly call this a museum, more of a display at the Harvard Medical library. That aside, it is definitely interesting and worth checking out if you can find it. It is also free and how often are going to see conjoined fetal skeletons anyway? read more

Boring. Maybe it was because I had to go for school. The holocaust part was interesting but set up awkwardly and was very skimpy on details that should have been there in some parts read more

Well this isn't a museum, we were a little disappointed. They had some display items about 4 cases worth. About 1/2 the cases are empty because the items were taken away for preservation. It takes about 20 mins to get through the displays. If you were planning a specific trip, don't. If you are in the immediate area then it is worth just stopping in. Thank goodness it was free. read more