Photo Gallery Bodies on Display
The German anatomist Gunther von Hagens has stirred controversy and curiosity with his Body Worlds exhibition. The traveling displays consist of more than 200 authentic preserved human and animal specimens, including whole bodies as well as individual organs and transparent body slices.
The anatomical exhibition of real human bodies showcases boody parts preserved with polymers, in a process dubbed "plastination." The public is allowed to view the internal organs and inner workings of deceased humans...
...and animals. This plastinated reindeer was unveiled in London in late 2008.
Von Hagens, who created the show and developed the "plastination" technique, claims that the exhibits aim to teach people about human skeletal, cardiovascular and the treatment of diseases.
The bodies are displayed in a variety of poses, some alone and some with others -- like this juxtaposed couple in Los Angeles last year.
The "plastinates" also wear a range of facial expressions.
Von Hagens has denied using bodies other than ones donated to his Institute for Plastination. Controversy over the source of the displayed bodies has swirled around similar exhibits.
The German doctor has also faced controversy for using the bodies of pregnant women and fetuses in his exhibitions. This plastinated cadaver of a 36-week-old fetus was shown in Manchester, England in 2008.
An assistant stands in front of shelving with human skulls in the new workshop of Gunther von Hagens in the eastern German town of Guben, where his patented preservation technique is on display.
