Museum of Natural History, La Specola
Natural history museum · Giardino di Boboli ·

Museum of Natural History, La Specola

Natural history museum · Giardino di Boboli ·

Wax anatomical models, taxidermy, minerals, fossils, and more

Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by corinnealexandra (Atlas Obscura User)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Photo courtesy of La Specola
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by gavinsuz (Atlas Obscura User)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by corinnealexandra (Atlas Obscura User)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Sailko/CC BY 2.5
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Michelle Enemark (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by Daderot/CC BY-SA 3.0
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by zackofalltrades (Atlas Obscura User) (User Photograph)
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null
Museum of Natural History, La Specola by null

Information

Via Romana, 17, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy Get directions

Information

Static Map

Via Romana, 17, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy Get directions

+39 055 275 6444
sma.unifi.it
museostorianaturalefirenze
𝕏
@storianaturale

Features

restroom
wheelchair accessible entrance
wheelchair accessible restroom

Last updated

Dec 7, 2025

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@michelinguide
48,074 Postcards · 8,013 Cities

Florence’s First Chef Residency: Martino di Napoli Rampolla on Food, Art, and Community

"Florence’s natural history museum that’s dear to me from childhood visits; it’s been remodeled, but I still love the old collections of birds and wax bodies." - Laura Rysman

https://guide.michelin.com/en/article/travel/florence-food-and-art-martino-di-napoli-rampolla
Museum of Natural History, La Specola
@atlasobscura
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18 Places To See Uncanny Specimens of Wax Anatomy

"The largest and best-known wax anatomical collection, La Specola is part of the Museum of Natural History in Florence and also houses some wonderful taxidermy, including now extinct specimens and a very questionable-looking hippopotamus. La Specola is the oldest public museum in Europe, having started as the personal collection of the Medici family. It was opened to the public in 1775. Anyone could attend as long as they “looked clean.” The wax anatomical models were a huge hit, and the museum was attended by luminaries such as Goethe (who later wrote The Sorrows of Young Werther) and Emperor Leopold who funded the museum. Of special interest are the wax anatomical Venuses, wax models of naked women posed in old-fashioned semi-erotic poses, but with their rib cages and stomachs pulled open to the world. These gutted female forms were a favorite of the Marquis de Sade. Clemente Susini’s wax models, painstaking to produce and incredibly fragile, can be seen in only a few other locations throughout the world, including the Semmelweis Museum in Budapest, and the Josephinum in Vienna, and the Wax Anatomy Museum at University of Cagliari. The overlooked collection is surprisingly empty in the tourist-packed Florence. While there, you can also check out its zoological collection. Update as of September 2019: The La Specola Museum is closed for refurbishment work and is expected to reopen in the next 18 months." - ATLAS_OBSCURA

https://www.atlasobscura.com/lists/18-places-to-see-uncanny-specimens-of-wax-anatomy
Daderot/CC BY-SA 3.0
La Specola
@afar
25,132 Postcards · 3,700 Cities

"La Specola, one of the oldest science museums in Europe, contains a collection of specimens of the natural world—some of which date back to the 16th century. It includes strange and wonderful objects ranging from tiny iridescent green beetles and multicolored butterflies to whale and rhinoceros skeletons. There's even a hippo, preserved by taxidermy, that was once pet to the Medici family and lived in the Boboli Gardens! The extraordinary, if slightly creepy, anatomical waxes filling the last four rooms of the museum were once used to train Florentine medical students. The frescoes and elaborate pietra dura inlays that decorate the walls and ceilings detail Italian scientific achievements."

The Best Things to Do in Florence
Photo courtesy of La Specola
La Specola

Carol D

Google
Hands down, one of the coolest and most interesting museums I have ever visited in my life. I am still in awe of all that I saw there. Do not miss the mineral rooms, natural history and of course those was models. Pay the extra €3 to visit the anatomy rooms of which there are nine. These are beyond incredible to see. A small group is led through each one, inside the original 18th century glass cases are was models of every part of the human anatomy. There are a total of 18 whole bodies too. Extraordinary to see these as art, science and know they have existed this long and still look this incredible. Just wow. For most of the museum there was hardly another person in sight, I felt like I had the space to myself. For the anatomy rooms there was perhaps a group of 12 of us all together. These are timed entries with the first one beginning at 11am. Definitely a must see in Florence.

Henrik S.

Google
At first, this museum seems a little bit ... well... where is the museum? Once inside, it opens up and there's so much to see! I mainly went here to see the La Specola collection of wax models. Luckily the tour was scheduled to start ~40 minutes after I arrived. I spent the time, before the tour, looking at the mineral display and that, in itself, is worth the visit. A huge collection of all sorts of fascinating rocks from all over the world, all displayed to show their best sides. The La Specola collection was an experience, for sure, the amazing models, hand made from wax, are so detailed that they almost rival the Body World exhibitions (that feature real bodies). The tour starts with the animals, small and larger, opened up to show their insides in different selections and poses. The models were used for teaching so they each have a different focus, showing different organs and systems. The same goes for the human models, some displays show a hand or foot in 3-4 different configurations, others show the heart in 5 different ways (opened up in different ways), one of the full body models show the lymphatic system, another shows the organs, another focuses on the blood system and so on. One entire room has the pregnancy and birth display that, even though it's not entirely accurate, shows the entire process including various ways it can go wrong. The section with animals and plants seems to go on forever, one room follows another with more and more fascinating displays. A lot of the animals are, and this is explained for some of them, stuffed by people that have never seen them in real life. All in all, well worth a visit!

Cornelius Wulpus W.

Google
One of the best things to do in Florence, the collection is quite frankly incredible, some of its collections are on par or exceed the Natural History Museum in London (some of the mineral specimens and the taxidermy section). You need to book the Hall of Bones and additional wax sculpture tours to see everything, but it’s only a couple euros extra. A full visit will last about 2-3 hours depending on how interested you are in the exhibitions. A visit excluding the optional extras will take around 1.5-2 hours. It’s also right next to Boboli Gardens and the Pitti Palace. Entry as of 2025: €10 for standard, €3 extra for additional exhibits (guided tour only).

Janelle I.

Google
I am SO GLAD I visited this incredible hidden gem!!! As a scientist and taxidermist, it was amazing to see the wax anatomy displays and specimens from the early 1800s. I was the only person in the museum today and was able to go slow and appreciate everything on display. And as a bonus, the whole 2nd floor had a mineral and gemstone exhibit that was a gorgeous collection from all over the world! If you love natural history, you MUST visit this museum!!

Peter A.

Google
I would love to rate it higher but... There are an mineral exibit that is super modern and well done. Great science and storytelling There is a sektion on vax models that is cool And then there are all the animals... This part is sadly like a natural museum from 1950. Just animals and latin names. Even as a trained biologist this was dissapointing. Many of the animals was in terrible shape. There is so much scope for great storytelling and teaching and its not even tried.

runningdogyankee

Google
Wonderful to see a whole museum dedicated to the life of Galileo! It does a good job of contextualising his times. Don’t miss the display of his middle finger, which about sums up his feelings towards the religious authorities of the time.

margarethe M.

Google
MUST VISIT, IF YOU ARE IN FIRENZE!! especially, if you are into rocks, minerals, bugs and everything else this museum has! as a geology nerd + environmental protection major i loved this place the most in all of firenze <3

Chad C.

Google
This is a great experience for kids who’ve had enough renaissance art over a few weeks. We spent three hours here with an 8 and 11 year old. So much to see and it’s really well organized. You will have the place to yourselves.
google avatar

Regina L.

Yelp
I've lived in Florence for two years and never once heard about this place! During our stay in Florence last week, one of my old friends recommended that we check it out. My husband, who is a science/zoology buff was floored by how much interesting stuff was in the relatively small space. There are about ten different rooms that are filled with fossils, specimen, and taxidermied animals. Some of the rooms were a bit boring, but the finals rooms totally make up for it. The end of the museum is comprised of wax anatomical models from the 1700's that were used by medical students studying surgery and basic anatomy. It was truly incredible to see these beautiful wax figures with their guts spilling out. It truly was a sight to see!! They also have a beautiful observatory room with a giant telescope, but you have to make an appointment to see it. We were so amazed by all of the wonders in the museum. There is a also a beautiful garden in the back that's nice to check out when it's open. It's a great stop for people with children, or for people looking to take a break from art museums.
google avatar

Maryam L.

Yelp
This place just blew my mind. I am so surprised it's not on people's "must-see" lists for Florence. There was only a couple other people here when we were here. It is across the bridge, not too far if you are staying anywhere near the Uffuzi Museum. If you are a medical professional the human anatomy exhibits will blow your mind. Art meets human anatomy. Some of the wax models are in very interesting poses as their organs are displayed. If I correctly recall, most of these wax models are from the late 1700s. Then there's the animals, tons and tons of animals, from a wide array of birds, bears, lions, alligators. It's a zoo of stuffed , once alive animals. It's kind of creepy but very interesting, nothing like I've ever seen before. Something to definitely experience if in Italy. Pictures don't do this place justice. 6Euro per person.
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Lyd M.

Yelp
Fell in love with this place. Family members who had been before raved about it so I was eager to check it out and it was cooler than I even expected. Room after room of fossils, animals, minerals and exotic plants acquired by several generations of the Medici. Located right near the Pitti Palace, it was weird to me how few people were there. Fine with me! I got to look at everything and take plenty of pictures. The anatomical wax models were so cool...used to teach medical students. A really great rainy day stop.

karen m.

Yelp
La Specola is the precurser to Gunther von Hagen's "Body Worlds". 17 century eerie and morbid wax anatomical specimens. A never ending display of taxidermy- everything from mile long tape worms, to rhinos, endangered birds, and reptilian 'nightmares are made of' monstrosities. Go for the wax models. Incredibly anatomically correct. Several reviews mention the sexual vulgarity and in fact, this is a case of different treatment for the sexes. Be prepared for women sporting pearls, lounging on frayed silk "fainting" couches- their entrails displayed in a tangled mess of offal internal organs. Amazingly, considering the lack of proper artificial coolants, these displays have survived several hundred years. The museum is open regular hours; however, to view the wax figures a tour must be booked so plan accordingly- my tour was at 3 pm and I don't know if there are other time slots available. I read a negative review stating that the taxidermy specimens were in poor condition-an accurate observation for sure. Then again, one shouldn't be surprised by the condition of a modeled, preserved, 3-400 year old organic specimen. It's a small museum, off the typical tourist radar- well worth a visit after touring Palazzo Pitti

Irene M.

Yelp
Love this little museum, especially it's beautiful collection of wax anatomical models.