Medical and Human Remains Collections
The University of Zurich’s Medical Collection is one of the most significant in Europe. More than 20’000 objects are currently being inventoried and prepared for scientific research. The collection focuses on medical instruments and equipment for diagnosis and therapy. The Zurich collection’s high coverage of the 19th century and exemplary pieces from the 17th and 18th centuries set it apart from other similar collections. The surgical, obstetrical, ophthalmological and orthopaedic subcollections are especially extensive. Further highlights include instruments and equipment used for research and surgery by important doctors of the University of Zurich and the surrounding region, as well as devices and remedies used in alternative medicine.
The Institute of Evolutionary Medicine owns one of the few collections of historical human remains in Switzerland: The Human Remains Collection. This collection consists of about 20,000 objects and specimens of human origin, the majority of Swiss provenance: dry and wet preparations as well as bones from pathology and forensic medicine, tissue samples and a small group of mummies.