Located in Reykjavik, Iceland’s Phallological Museum is home to the world’s largest collection of penises, with an eye-popping array of penile parts collected from hundreds of different animals.
And the good news is: size doesn’t appear to matter.
Inside the museum’s large, illuminated rooms, the private parts of male mammals are on display in their rich variety of shapes and sizes, from whales, seals and bears to cats and even mice. The museum also houses a wide range of genitalia-inspired artifacts, such as trays, totem poles and a telephone.
“Started as a joke”
Rather than a temple of hushed reverence and penis envy, the Phallological Museum is a merry place, as visitors frequently giggle while observing the astonishing 286 biological specimen on display that symbolize masculinity, and in the human species, at least, are a source of male pride.
“It’s a good plateau for jokes and having a good time. You can get educated and at the same time have some fun,” said Hjortur Sigurdsson, 52, a former logistics manager who runs the museum.
His father Sigurdur Hjartarson, a historian who worked as a teacher for 37 years, opened the museum in 1997 with 62 specimen.
“It all started as a joke,” he explained to AFP. “My father had fun just collecting, doing something no one has done before. He always said ‘somebody had to do it’.”
In 1980 Hjartarson had a collection of 13 specimen, nine from land mammals and four from whales, and a decade later, had increased it to 34.
A human phallus
But it took a number of years before the museum was able to get its hands on a human specimen — figuratively speaking — one which was endowed by a 96-year-old Icelandic donor initially concerned that his manhood would shrink with age, as Sigurdsson recounts.
When asked whether he would be willing to contribute to the museum’s unique collection, visitor Jerry Andersson was nonplussed: “Sure. I’m donating my organs; I guess I can donate one more.”
According to Sigurdsson, the purpose of the Penis Museum is education, not eroticism. “It’s been a bit taboo, especially (with) the human organ, but if you say ‘penis’, it attracts people,” he said. “And, of course, we’re the only museum in the world that has been collecting biological organs.”
Interest in the penis museum has grown over the years and in 2011, in an island nation better known for its breathtaking landscapes, it had a whopping 12,000 visitors, exceeding all expectations. It was also featured in a Canadian documentary film appropriately called The Final Member, about the museum’s quest to obtain a human penis.
Aside from its outstanding collection of male genitalia, the Phallological Museum also has an in-house shop which sells penis-inspired novelty items ranging from phallic-looking pasta to designer condoms and hand-knitted willy warmers.
Most of the museum’s visitors are foreign nationals — and more than 60 percent are women.
