Body Worlds (& Other Forever Corpses)

Hi Caitlin! I am interested in planning for my own death, funeral and burial, and talking about it with my family. I looked up the causes of death for someone in my age group (35-44) and #1 was "accidental poisoning". For men in the same age range, it was the same, with #2 being suicide. I am curious about this accidental poisoning. There is a separate category for accidental injury. With poisoning, are we talking food poisoning? Accidentally eating a bowl of rat poison? Overdoses that are considered accidental because there is no suicide note? Would you consider a video on this topic? I was interested in some kind of statistic on my dropping dead totally out of the blue versus knowing that I was ill and planning for my demise. This accidental poisoning threw me for a loop. Thanks!

Meredith Springs

Thanks for your research on this! These exhibits aren't something I can look at, though I love the requilaries and bejeweled martyrs so beautifully photographed by Dr. Koudounaris. This was the first I'd heard of the non-consent issues or at least under-documented bodies at these exhibits. It really touches that fear so many of us have: "what's gonna happen to my body after I die...?"

Dawn D.

I think that it should be by consent. For any and all dead bodies displayed anywhere. If you wanted your body to be displayed or whatever then you should be able to do that. To me it is a horror to display the dead bodies of those that did not want it. I felt this great sadness and horror at some museums when I see the mummies. Especially the ones that have been completely taken out of their sarcophagus and all of the ritual objects associated with their burial site gone. I don't think that there should be no more mummies in museums but keep them in their sarcophagus with the lid opened a bit to look in and all the items associated with their burial in place. I think this is coming more on my religious beliefs of a pagan that all religious paths are correct to their followers and we should respect that and allow them and their bodies to adhere to that code (as long as that code doesn't harm others). But displays of bodies whose original inhabitants agreed to this display is a good thing. You should be able to have this and it is a great way to teach people about their own bodies.(although I just hate fake eyes on anything...not sure why but fake eyes that look real creep me out on anything way more than no eyes. ) And you can talk on about what it means for society to have this but similar practices to this date way back in many cultures and religions. Hell the Vatican has a huge room full of the bones of dead saints.

Michelle Sunda

I have seen the Body Worlds exhibit, and I thought it was wonderful! BTW, it also makes a GREAT first date! ( yes, it does... trust me on this one). For a long time I thought I would donate my corpse to Gunther VH, because I like his work so much. But then, I had the fear that what if I donated my corpse to Gunther, and it was given to his assistant? I mean, would I really want my corpse displayed if it was prepared by the Ed Wood of the Plastination arts? Anyway, another great post Caitlin! Thank you for what yo do!

Party on future corpses! Best line ever. :) I went to see Bodies the Exhibition when i lived in Las Vegas a few years ago and loved it! I would definitely not want this sort of thing shut down, but I guess I'm going to have to kinda agree with ya that consent should be obtained by the donor. I'd be interested in seeing an exhibition with bodies dissected between glass panels Damien Hirst style, like the horse in that movie The Cell. But on a dead human of course, with proper consent. ;)

This one took a bunch of research (I wanted to get it right). Research that you all make possible. Thank you!

Caitlin Doughty