Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Bored Panda
Bored Panda
Entertainment
Akvile Petraityte 🇺🇦

50 Museums That Went Above And Beyond To Make Sure The Experience Is Never Boring (New Pics)

Museum visits are often informative to enrich one’s knowledge. But occasionally, you will have experiences that may leave you questioning whether what you saw was indeed real. 

Take these unusual exhibits, for example. We’re talking about displays like jars filled with actual kidney stones, “the world’s roundest object,” and Thomas Edison’s final breath preserved in a test tube (and no, you didn’t misread that). 

Like what we did in a previous piece, we’ve collected some of the oddest, most eye-catching museum finds from different corners of the internet. Scroll through and be amazed or weirded out, either of which would be understandable.

#1 This Little Girl's Rock Displayed In My Local Museum

Image credits: Clopidee

#2 That's Unreal

Image credits: katieculture

#3 The Capitoline Museums In Rome Have Artworks Carved Out On Stone For Visually Impaired People To Feel So That They Can Also Enjoy Paintings

Image credits: brickshowoff

Since we’re on the topic, let’s look at a few of the world’s unusual museums, beginning with the Beijing Museum of Tap Water in China. As the name suggests, it’s all about the 90-year-old history of Beijing tap water. 

What can you expect inside the museum? One hundred thirty artifacts, 110 photos, 40 models, and sand tables. It also has a miniature tap water filtration system for a better visual presentation. 

#4 The Swedish Warship Vasa. It Sank In 1628 Less Than A Mile Into Its Maiden Voyage And Was Recovered From The Sea Floor After 333 Years Almost Completely Intact

Now housed at the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, it is the world's best-preserved 17th-century ship.

Image credits: ICumCoffee

#5 Suitcases Of People Sent To Concentration Camps. Poland, Gdańsk, World War II Museum. Each Suitcase Is A Family, A Life

Image credits: rr27680

#6 Museum Glass vs. Regular Glass

Image credits: dadooob

The British Lawnmower Museum in the UK is about the history of the grass-cutting device, which dates back to the late 1700s. It displays around 300 restored lawnmowers, including the first patent in 1799. 

The museum also features lawnmowers owned by notable figures Princess Diana and Prince Charles, legendary musician Brian May, and television personality Nicholas Parsons.

#7 The Actual Bus Rosa Parks Refused To Change Seats On. National Civil Rights Museum. Memphis, TN

Image credits: tearsaresweat

#8 The Ficus Retusa Linn, The World’s Oldest Bonsai Tree, Is Over 1000 Years Old. Crespi Bonsai Museum, Italy

Image credits: Risor_

#9 The Whale At The American Museum Of Natural History Is Now Vaccinated! They Gave It A Bandage When Kids In America Were Approved For Their Shots

Image credits: QueenLucy11

In addition to soulful jazz music and delectable Cajun food, New Orleans is also known for the Museum of Death. Stepping into the place, you’ll find antique mortician tools, body bags, coffins, and everything that will remind you of mortality

The museum also features photos of the infamous Manson family, along with images of crime scenes and car accidents. The website was kind enough to point out that this isn’t for the faint of heart, so proceed with caution.

#10 In Japan, There Is A Museum For Rocks That Look Like Faces

Image credits: isaynonowords

#11 I Went To A Guitar Exhibition That Featured A Space For Air Guitar

Image credits: Kmb1995

#12 From My Trip Through The Holocaust Museum, This Little Boy Took His Boot Off To Shower And Never Put It Back On

Image credits: Megalicious15

If you are curious about indoor plumbing and happen to be in India, visit the Sulabh International Museum of Toilets. Sociologist Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak founded the museum in 1992 to highlight the historical development of toilet systems and the evolution of sanitation. 

It houses pictures and objects dating back to 2500 BC, as well as bidets and water closets that began to appear in households in 1145 AD. You will also find poems that appreciate the use of toilets.

#13 This Moon Exhibition In My Local Town

Image credits: tombola201uk

#14 The Fire Exit Sign In This Egyptian Museum Is A Pharaoh Running

Image credits: reddit.com

#15 These Mugs Are 3,700 Years Old. From The Minoan Civilization And Now On Display At The Heraklion Museum, Greece

Image credits: gibgod

We’d also like to hear from you, readers. Have you encountered odd museum finds? If not, which ones among this list stood out to you? Comment below!

#16 These Dinosaurs Wearing Masks At The Indianapolis Children's Museum

Image credits: consoLe_-

#17 The Original Gay Pride Flag, And The Sewing Machine It Was Made With

Image credits: reddit.com

#18 1,800-Year-Old Roman Leather Sandals On Display At Vindolanda Fort In Northumberland, England

Image credits: Stotallytob3r

#19 LEGO Dinosaur, Australian Museum

Image credits: XxHarryxX666

#20 My Local Museum Got A Life-Size Replica Of A Quetzalcoatlus. It Looks Too Real

Image credits: Pkyug

#21 I Found The Infamous 3700-Year-Old Copper Sale Complaint In The British Museum

Image credits: cicglass

#22 These Flowers Are Made From Crystals. Natural History Museum, Vienna

Image credits: Draiom

#23 The Way This Museum Arranged Snail Shells To Demonstrate Color Variation

Image credits: Stall0ne

#24 A Museum Display Showing The Clothing Worn By Intimate Assault Survivors During The Time Of Their Attacks

Image credits: -_Mocha_-

#25 There Is A Free Public Cycle Path Through The National Dutch World War II Museum

Image credits: attilla68

#26 This Museum Has Taxidermized Animals Randomly Hidden In Odd Places - Behind Other Exhibits And So On

Image credits: Atomlad360

#27 One Of The 4000-Year-Old Well-Preserved Wagons Unearthed In The Lchashen Village In The Vicinity Of Lake Sevan. Made Of Oak, They Are The Oldest Known Wagons In The World

Now on display at the History Museum of Armenia.

Image credits: reddit.com

#28 Xenomorph By H. R. Giger. Exhibition In Berlin

Image credits: Interesting-Tip5586

#29 My Brother Went On A Trip To Egypt And Saw Mummified Crocodiles Exhibited In A Museum

Image credits: Daniel-Mentxaka

#30 A Full Human Nervous System In The Anatomy Museum In Baylor College Of Medicine

Image credits: whatyoucallmetoday

#31 From The Hakone Open-Air Museum

Image credits: x0_Kiss0fDeath

#32 I Took This At The Van Gogh Exhibit In NYC. One Of The Best Experiences Of My Life

Image credits: DrunkenPunchline

#33 I Found The Holy Grail Today In A Museum In France

Image credits: -Zyon-

#34 Skeleton Of Siamese Twins In The Mütter Museum

Image credits: amonaloli12

#35 Dice For An Ancient Korean Drinking Game, Inscribed With Commands Like "Chug It All And Dance" Or "Sing A Song". Around 750 AD, Gyeongju National Museum

Image credits: professorearl

#36 "Puppy" - A Dog Statue Made Entirely Of Flowers By Jeff Koons In 1992, Is Located In The Guggenheim Museum In Bilbao, Spain

Image credits: MasterM35

#37 The Museum In My City Dressed Up The Dinosaurs For Christmas. Taichung, Taiwan

Image credits: Frankmenistan

#38 Data's Costume On Display At The Goonies Museum In Astoria, Oregon

Image credits: OregonTripleBeam

#39 The World's Roundest Object, At The Deutsche Museum In Munich, Germany

Image credits: ameenbusiness666

#40 This Real Triceratops Skull In Mid-Processing. Denver Science Museum

Image credits: Specific_Bass_9277

#41 This Art Exhibit At Renwick Gallery

Image credits: FookenZyzzBrah

#42 The Best Preserved "Lorica Segmentata" Roman Plate Armor In The World To Date, Corbridge Roman Site Museum, Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland, UK

Image credits: bigmeat

#43 The Roman Wine Of Speyer Is The Oldest Wine Of The World That Is Still Liquid. The Bottle Has Been Dated Between 325 And 350 AD. It Was Found In 1867 In A Grave And Is Today In A Museum

Image credits: hjalmar111

#44 This Art Museum In Denmark Lets You Scratch A Lamborghini

Image credits: Thomask124

#45 This Hyper-Realistic Ocean Wave In A Museum Exhibit

Image credits: grenadetradedotcom

#46 Inflatable Tank Decoy Used In WWII To Fool The Germans Into Thinking The Allies Were Going To Invade Hundreds Of Miles From The Actual D-Day Landing Sites

International Spy Museum, Washington DC.

Image credits: hoosyourdaddyo

#47 These Jars In A Surgery Museum Are Full Of Gallstones And Kidney Stones

Image credits: Jestocost4

#48 These Models Of Hippies, Skaters, And Punks Are In A History Museum In Ecuador

Image credits: CJayStapes

#49 Charming Anglerfish Sculpture At The Ripley’s Museum In Wisconsin Dells, Made From Scrap Metal

Image credits: NathanTheKlutz

#50 Plastic Bag Jellyfish At Vancouver Aquarium

Image credits: ItzGonnaBeMei

#51 This Statue At The National Museum Of Stockholm Perfectly Blocking Sunlight With His Hand

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.