"Musée d'Histoire de la Médecine"

Inside the majestic building of the "René Descartes" university in Paris is hidden this small but glorious Medical History Museum. Consisting of one long room, build in 1905 all in wood, glass and iron, it is a facinating exploration of medical tools through the ages (until early XXth century).

Most of them will give you the creeps, especially some crazy gynecologic or kidney stones removing apparatus, but others will facinate you with their aesthetics and ingenuity, like the wonderful articulated hand prosthetics. Suddenly, losing a hand looks pretty cool !



The most gruesome piece is definitely an "artistic" table, made with petrified bits of brains, bile, liver, lungs, and glands, on top of wich are placed an also petrified foot, four ears and cut vertebrae. It was made by the completely insane Italian doctor Efisio Marini and offered as a gift (!!!) to the poor Napoleon III, who I suppose was quick to offer it to a museum, just to get rid of the sight.