Musée Dupuytren, a museum with a difference
The Musée Dupuytren was created thanks to the generosity of Guillaume Dupuytren, a renowned anatomist, professor of surgery and personal physician to Louis XVIII, who died in 1835.
In his will, Dr Dupuytren bequeathed a significant sum to the Faculty of Medicine of Paris. The Faculty is housed within the Cordeliers Convent, a former religious establishment that became national property during the Revolution and is now classified as a historical monument.
The dean of the medical faculty commissioned the creation of a museum dedicated to pathological anatomy in the convent’s refectory.
Over the next four decades, the museum’s collections grew considerably, expanding from approximately 1,000 specimens at its inception to over 6,000.
These collections encompassed a wide variety of objects, including specialised surgical instruments, skeletons, jars containing malformed human organs and fetuses, as well as prints, paintings, and drawings illustrating various human deformities and anatomical anomalies resulting from specific pathologies.
Musée Dupuytren – closed from 1937 to 1967
The Musée Dupuytren became obsolete and closed its doors in 1937, and its collections were relegated to the old basements of the Faculty of Medicine.
Unfortunately, some specimens were even destroyed due to a lack of storage space.
However, the museum was reopened in 1967 in a vacant pavilion of the Faculty of Medicine.
The first collections consisted of remnants from the Royal College of Surgery, including many wax specimens dating from the late 18th century.
These unique collections were enriched over time with anatomical wax models illustrating various diseases and malformations, and a specialised library has also been created to complement the museum’s resources.
Musée Dupuytren, a humbling place!
You will discover deformed skeletons, jars containing two-headed animal embryos, two-headed brains, cyclopes, and individuals with severe deformities…
While many of these malformations have become rare in the Western world, some unfortunately persist in developing countries. One cannot help but feel compassion for these people facing such ordeals. The sight of such suffering is heartbreaking. Among them, you will find the brain of the patient whose case allowed Dr. Paul Broca to establish the link between brain lesions and aphasia, paving the way for brain mapping.
The Musée Dupuytren is thus not a “house of horrors,” as some might think. This is an exceptional museum that deserves to be visited with respect for these beings, human and animal, who had the misfortune of being born deformed or afflicted by terrible diseases. However, it is not a museum suitable for sensitive souls or young children who might not grasp the significance of these collections.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 2pm-5pm
N.B. Photos not allowed
Directions: 6th district – Centre des Cordeliers – 15 Rue de l’Ecole de Médecine – to your right towards the cloisters as your enter the main courtyard
Metro: Odéon or Cluny-La Sorbonne on Line 10
Coordinates: Lat 48.850775 – Long 2.341153
