Museum of Anatomy

What to expect

The Museum of Anatomy is the teaching collection of the Department of Anatomy at the Jagiellonian University Medical College, housed in a historic building on Kopernika Street just east of the Old Town. It is not a general-interest museum but a serious academic anatomy collection of more than 2000 specimens across three rooms: bone preparations, comparative anatomy and anthropology in the first; so-called wet preparations in the second - organs, sections and fetuses with developmental abnormalities preserved in formaldehyde, alongside corrosion casts of blood vessels; and the most valuable specimens from the era of Professor Ludwik Teichmann in the third.

The collection dates back to 1803, when the first specimens - just twelve bone and fetal preparations - were brought from Vienna. During the German occupation the museum played a quiet part in history, when the anatomy lecturer Stanisław Kohmann secretly removed specimens to support clandestine university teaching in 1942-1944. This is a subject for the strong of stomach: admission is restricted to visitors aged 16 and over, and it appeals mainly to those with a medical, scientific or morbidly curious bent rather than a casual sightseeing itinerary.

Visiting in practice

The museum is open Monday to Friday, with the last entry at 2:00 PM and mornings starting at 8:30 AM. Crucially, visits are by prior appointment only and for organised groups; school groups must be accompanied by a teacher. Booking is by phone on 691 500 900 (Mon-Fri, 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM) or by email. Tickets are 14 PLN standard and 8 PLN reduced for students and pupils, payable in cash or by card. A visit takes about an hour. Note that photographing and filming the exhibits is strictly forbidden, and there is no English-language signage promised - arranging an English-speaking guide is best handled when you book.

Getting there

The Department of Anatomy stands at Kopernika 12, on the eastern edge of the Old Town, about a ten-minute walk from the Main Square through the Planty park and along Kopernika Street. It sits within the Jagiellonian University’s historic medical campus, next to the Botanical Garden. The nearest tram stops are on Kopernika Street and around Rondo Mogilskie. Because a reservation is mandatory, plan the visit well ahead rather than dropping in.

Nearby

A few minutes away on Floriańska Street, the Pharmacy Museum traces the history of apothecaries with reconstructed pharmacy interiors. In the heart of the Old Town, Collegium Maius is the oldest building of the Jagiellonian University, with its collection of historic scientific instruments, and a few streets on the Czartoryski Museum holds Leonardo’s Lady with an Ermine.