A new medical museum featuring oddities such as a Peruvian mummy, 16th century dissection tables, and a robot used to sequence the human genome opened in London on Wednesday.  It combines medicine and art, and is a place for people interested in what it is to be human, said curator Ken Arnold.

The artistic side includes a torso sculpture by John Isaacs called I can’t help the way I feel, which explores obesity.

Other exhibits include Leonardo da Vinci’s anatomical drawings of the heart, Japanese sex aids, and displays that explore genetics and malaria as viewed by artists, scientists and popular culture, such as the work of Andy Warhol.

The $63 million permanent exhibit is dedicated to medicine and its impact on life. Curators selected the 1.5 million artifacts from the collection of Sir Henry Wellcome.

Wellcome, a pharmaceutical entrepreneur, philanthropist and collector, travelled the Victorian world looking for treasures such as a lock of George III’s hair, Napolean’s toothbrush, Charles Darwin’s walking stick with a skull-shaped handle, and Lord Nelson’s razor.

Source: CBC.ca