Some things exist for reasons unknown, but they do. And they’re famous because they’re so uncanny that people wouldn’t expect them to be. Let me ask you about the strangest place you know. An abandoned complex, or a haunted house, for instance? But let me tell you about museums. Yes, museums!
You may or may not be a museum lover, but there are some really bizarre museums that you definitely would want to check out. So gather your dream travel itinerary and keep on reading.
1. Museum of Broken Relationships
In Croatia, there’s a museum that is essentially an ode to all the failed love stories. People come in and drop their personal objects from past relationships with brief descriptions to go by. What’s crazy is that the museum actually began as a joke. When two artists from Zagreb broke up, they joked about how they’ll set up a museum for personal items that got left over.
The museum, both in the physical and a virtual setting, is brimming with stories, heartbreaks, and artifacts that may seem simple to an outsider but are layered with meanings and connotations.
2. Museum Of The Weird
As the name suggests, the museum features peculiar objects and oddities from across the globe. Like, shrunken heads, Fiji Mermaid, real mummies, et cetera. People also consider the museum as the smaller version of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! It’s located in Austin, America, and opens every day except for occasional holidays.
3. Sulabh International Museum Of Toilets
If you’re a desi, you know about Sulabh Shauchalaya. Apparently, there is a Sulabh International Museum of Toilets in Delhi that’s all about the international history of sanitation, hygiene, and toilets. The museum features the transformation of toilets divided into Ancient, Medieval and Modern sections.
4. Cup Noodles Museum
Fan of noodles? There’s a museum in Japan that takes pride in the country’s instant noodles history. The quirky place even has a tunnel that contains around 800 instant noodles packages from different parts of the world. The interactive museum is also a hub for activities such as theatre and exhibitions. Apparently, it also has a station where you can customize your own package of Ramen.
5. Museum Of Death
This just gets spooky. Doesn’t it? Apparently, there’s a museum of death in Hollywood with a goal to ‘make people happy about being alive.’ Located in Hollywood and New Orleans, the bizarre museum contains graphic exhibits such as explicit murder crime scenes and victims’ photos, baby coffins, duplicates of execution devices, and even the severed head of the French serial killer, Henri Landru.
6. Museum Of Enduring Beauty
In Malaysia, there’s a museum dedicated to extreme methods and beauty standards that people have resorted to in their quest for beauty. This includes gut-wrenching body modifications, lip stretchers, tattoos, and head molding, among others. The museum reflects the transition from ancient to modern standards of beauty from different cultures.
7. Kunstkamera, Museum of Anthropology & Ethnography
The Kunstkamera is Russia’s first musem. Dedicated to human oddities and curiosities, it exhibits 2,000,000 items. It was established to debunk the myth around monsters as its founder and monarch Peter The Great kept insisting on further research on deformities. The museum houses bizarre anthropological and archaeological items such as deformed fetuses, rare minerals, amputated limbs, and old surgical tools, among others.
8. Iceland Phallological Museum
As the name suggests, the Iceland museum is about male sex organs. And no, it’s not about sex or porn! The museum exhibits 300 different kinds of penises from more than 90 species of mammals. From gigantic specimens of whales to a minuscule one from a mouse, the museum for penises has a diverse collection that attracts thousands of visitors every year.
9. Museum Of Sex
Located in NYC, the Museum of Sex is about preserving the evolution of human sexuality and its cultural significance in different time periods. It exhibits art and artifacts from different eras, cultures, and medias. The museum destigmatizes taboos associated with sex and presents sexuality as innate and natural and spreads sex positivity. It also covers conversations and important issues surrounding sex. The most fun aspect is the museum are its carnivalesque sort of games.
10. The Bread Museum
Are you the one who likes their bread toast in the morning? This museum in Germany is dedicated to all true bread lovers. Covering the vast 6000-year bread history dating back to the stone age, the Bread Museum comprises more than 18,000 exhibits with 700 on permanent display. The museum also showcases the journey from grain farming in Europe to baking and art with bread.
11. Condom Museum
Located in Thailand, the condom museum began as a venture by the Thai Health Ministry to promote safe sex. The place contains condoms from different time periods and countries, a machine for testing a condom’s endurance, sexual aids, and much more. Crazy, right? Meanwhile, we’re here still putting up with the smirks of the guy at the medical store.
12. The Dog Collar Museum
Are you a dog-lover? The museum holds an exquisite collection of historical dog collars dating back to the 15th-century Spanish iron collars meant for the protection of the dog. Located in Leeds Castle, Kent, the museum exhibits a fascinating display of different styles of dog collars that have been used over the years.
13. Derwent Pencil Museum
Do you miss pencils? We lost so many of them during our school days and then got excited about buying the new Nataraj pencil ka dabba. But, have you wondered how pencils were invented? Undoubtedly, they’ve been a great invention for humankind. Apparently, there’s a museum in UK that traces the journey of graphite and the consequent pencil discovery and is also home to one of the world’s biggest colouring pencils.
14. Cancún Underwater Museum
We’ve talked so much about the land that it got monotonous. Do you know there is also an underwater museum in Mexico? Yes, the said museum is dedicated to the art of conservation and exhibits around 500 sculptors. It’s also pretty adventurous since you’ll have to opt for adventures such as scuba diving or snorkeling to actually explore the peculiar museum.
15. Museum Of Bad Art
All bad art goes to the museum of bad art since the place is about conserving, exhibiting, and celebrating art in all its forms. The museum is dedicated to acknowledging the efforts of the artists. It houses a permanent collection of 700 pieces that are “too bad to be ignored.” There’s no such thing as good art in MOBA because you’ll either be ROLFing or be perplexed about what the artist was thinking. But hey that shouldn’t stop us from creating. Right?
Mind-blown yet? My itinerary is sorted, I just need the money. By the way, which museum would you want to visit first?