The Semmelweis Museum of Medical History

Budapest:

The Ignác Semmelweis Museum
of Medical History

The Semmelweis Museum of Medical History is located on the western side of
the Danube River, north of Elizabeth Bridge.



The museum is named after the Hungarian doctor Ignác Semmelweis (1818-1865)
and it is located in the house where he was born.

 



The address is Aprod utca 1-3.

 

The address is Aprod utca 1-3.

 

The museum is named after the Hungarian doctor Ignác Semmelweis (1818-1865).

 

The museum is dedicated to the history of medicine.

 



The plaque on the wall in the hallway of the museum is a memorial for
József Antall (1932-1993), who was curator of the museum 1974-1990 and the first
prime minister of Hungary after the end of the cold war (1990-1993).

Jószef Antall is mentioned in Lonely Planet's guidebook for Budapest in the chapter
about the city's history (fifth edition, 2012). On page 185 Steve Fallon writes:

"The 1990 election was won by the centrist Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF), which advocated a gradual transtion to capitalism and was led by a softly spoken former museum curator, Jószef Antall."

As you can see, the name of the museum is not mentioned here.
The Semmelweis Museum is mentioned on page 66,
but Jószef Antall (the former curator) is not mentioned.

There should be a cross reference from page 66 to page 185,
and the other way from page 185 to page 66.

There is a monument for Ignác Semmelweis in the courtyard.

 

The monument for Semmelweis is a mother who holds a child in her arms.

 

Semmelweis is known as "the saviour of mothers."

 

In 1963 the remains of Semmelweis were placed in the courtyard wall. In the same year the house
where he was born was converted to a museum named after him.

The courtyard of the museum.

The courtyard of the museum.

 

The courtyard of the museum.



 



The courtyard of the museum.

 

The interior of the museum. Some rooms are decorated with old furniture

to show what the place looked like when Semmelweis lived here.



The interior of the museum.



A part of the exhibit inside the museum: pictures and medical publications.



A part of the exhibit of the museum. This picture shows the book that Semmelweis wrote about
his medical discovery. It was written in German and published in 1861.

 

A part of the exhibit inside the museum.
All information to visitors is written Hungarian.

 

A part of the exhibit inside the museum. As you can see,

the layout of the exhibit is rather old-fashioned.

 

 

Semmelweis played an important role in the history of medicine and deserves to be remembered.
I think it is great that a museum dedicated to the history of medicine is named after him,
but it is a shame the organisation of the museum is so old-fashioned.

  

An old pharmacy has been installed in one of the rooms.

 

A detail of the old pharmacy.

 

 

A detail of the old pharmacy.

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For more information about Semmelweis and his medical discovery see my blog:

 

The Strange Story of Ignác Semmelweis

 

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