7 REVIEW PAPER N EW LIFE TO I TALIAN UNIVERSITY ANATOMICAL COLLECTIONS : DESIRE TO GIVE VALUE AND OPEN MUSEOLOGICAL ISSUES . C ASES COMPARED F RANCESCA MONZA 1 , GABRIELLA CUSELLA 2 , ROBERTA BALLESTRIERO 3 , ALBERTO ZANATTA 4 1 Department of Medicine and Aging Sciences, University of Chieti, Chieti, Italy 2 Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, Unit of Human Anatomy. University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy 3 Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts, London. The Gordon Museum of Pathology, London, United Kingdom 4 Museum of Pathological Anatomy, University Museums Centre, University of Padua, Padua, Italy The anatomical museums are one of the most difficult categories of museums to deal with because the issues addressed and the stored materials are complex to communicate and often not suitable for all audiences. The history of medicine teaches us that the knowledge of our body is a fascinating topic that continues to be the subject of study and research. The Italian anatomical museums are mostly university property, often closed and with specimens in urgent need of restoration. Their rooms still house important collections of human biological samples, dry or in liquid, collected between the eighteenth and twentieth century: a historical heritage that testifies to the evolution of medical science and provides a searchable archive of biological and genetic data. The curator of such a museum must confront many issues – museological, legisla- tive and ethical – many of which are unclear and incomplete. This article provides an overview of museological issues in the anatomical area in order to offer ideas and visions, from a comparison of three different examples: the Museum of Human Anatomy of the University of Pavia, the Museum of Pathological Anatomy at the University of Padua and the Gordon Museum of Pathology in London. Key words: medical heritage, medical museum, history of medicine, human pathology. DOI: HTTPS://DOI.ORG/10.5114/PJP.2019.84455 POL J PATHOL 2019; 70 (1): 7-13 Introduction In this paper, we will focus on three different mu- seums: The Anatomical Museum of Pavia, currently closed; the Museum of Pathological Anatomy of Uni- versity of Padua, which is under restoration and con- struction, and the Gordon Museum of Pathology in London, an active museum used for medical education. These museum environments consist of historical collections, all of which are university property and born for didactic and training purposes. The Anatomical Museum of Pavia – a crystallised museum One of the richest and most ancient Italian anatom- ical collections is preserved in the rooms of the Mu- seum of Human Anatomy of the University of Pavia (Fig. 1) at the Department of Public Health, Exper- imental and Forensic Medicine. It consists of over two thousand anatomical specimens, mostly natural, dry or in liquid, collected since the late ‘700s from the main Anatomists in Pavia: Giacomo Rezia (1745-