The Musée Dupuytren was a museum of wax anatomical items and specimens illustrating diseases and malformations. It was located at the

Cordeliers Convent There were several Cordeliers Convents (French: ''Couvent des Cordeliers'') in France. ''Cordeliers'' was the name given in France to the Conventual Franciscans. Cordeliers Convent in Paris The Cordeliers Convent in Paris is located 15 rue de l ...

campus, 15, rue de l'Ecole de Médecine, Les Cordeliers,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and is part of the

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University () is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to the Middle Ages in 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sorbon as a constituent college of the Unive ...

Faculty of Medicine. In 2016 the museum was closed and moved to the

Jussieu Campus The Jussieu Campus (''Campus de Jussieu'') or the Pierre-et-Marie-Curie Campus is a higher education campus located in the 5th arrondissement, Paris, 5th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the main campus of the Sorbonne Faculty of Science an ...

, joining 8 scientific collections of Sorbonne University. The collections will be open to students and researchers, and will be open to the public for events.

History

The museum was established in 1835 by Mathieu Orfila as the Museum of Pathological Anatomy of the Medicine Faculty of the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

, with the request of Baron Guillaume Dupuytren, anatomist and celebrated professor of surgery. The museum was installed in the old refectory of the

, gathering collections from throughout the faculty. Its first catalog was compiled between 1836 and 1842, and listed about a thousand specimens. By the late 1870s the museum contained over six thousand pieces. The museum began a slow decline starting in the late 19th century, despite continued acquisition of new collections, and its upkeep became problematic. In 1937 Gustave Roussy ordered the museum shut, with many items subsequently lost or destroyed. However, in 1967 Jacques Delarue (1901–1971) brought the museum back to life with a general refurbishment. Today it still retains an extensive collection including specimens dating from the 17th century, as well as

wax anatomical model A wax sculpture is a depiction made using a waxy substance. Often these are effigies, usually of a notable individual, but there are also death masks and scenes with many figures, mostly in relief. The properties of beeswax make it an excel ...

s, books, and photographs. Among many other notable items, the museum contains

brain The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...

s of aphasic patients, preserved in alcohol by the celebrated anatomist Paul Pierre Broca, and used in his research in the localization of brain functions.

References

Musée Dupuytren

Brain Archiving, International Brain Research Organization
{{DEFAULTSORT:Musee Dupuytren Dupuytren, Musee Buildings and structures in the 6th arrondissement of Paris Medical museums in France Museums established in 1835 1835 establishments in France University of Paris University museums in France Museums disestablished in 2016

History

See also

References