Hunterian Museum

Glasgow


Housed in the glorious sandstone university building, which is in itself reason enough to pay a visit, this quirky museum contains the collection of renowned one-time student William Hunter (1718–83). Hunter was primarily an anatomist and physician, but as one of those wonderfully well-rounded Enlightenment figures, he interested himself in everything the world had to offer.

Pickled organs in glass jars take their place alongside geological phenomena, potsherds gleaned from ancient brochs, dinosaur skeletons and a creepy case of deformed animals. The main halls of the exhibition, with their high vaulted roofs, are magnificent in themselves. Highlights include a display of artefacts from the Antonine Wall and the beautiful 1674 Chinese Map of the Whole World produced for the emperor by a Jesuit at the court.

This collection will perhaps become part of the new museum at Kelvin Hall but probably not until at least 2023.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Glasgow attractions

1. University of Glasgow

0.03 MILES

Though founded in 1451, the city's first university has only been located here in the West End since the 1870s. Its imposing sandstone neo-Gothic main…

2. Mackintosh House

0.09 MILES

Attached to the Hunterian Art Gallery, this is a reconstruction of the first home that Charles Rennie Mackintosh bought with his wife, noted designer…

3. Hunterian Art Gallery

0.11 MILES

Across the road from the Hunterian Museum, and part of the same bequest, this art gallery incorporates Mackintosh House as well as a good selection of…

4. Kelvingrove Park

0.2 MILES

On both banks of the meandering River Kelvin, a tributary of the Clyde, this West End park is popular with dog walkers, foot commuters and canoodling…

5. Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum

0.23 MILES

A magnificent sandstone building, this grand Victorian cathedral of culture is a fascinating and unusual museum, with a bewildering variety of exhibits…

6. Kelvin Hall

0.28 MILES

Opened in the 1920s as an exhibition centre, this enormous sandstone palace, renovated and reopened in 2016, is a mixed leisure-and-arts space. In…

7. National Library of Scotland

0.36 MILES

In Kelvin Hall, this outpost of Edinburgh's National Library of Scotland hosts a small exhibition and a digital archive of maps and audiovisual material…

8. Botanic Gardens

0.48 MILES

A marvellous thing about walking in here is the way the noise of Great Western Rd suddenly recedes into the background. The wooded gardens follow the…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "scotland/glasgow/west-end-1342325/attractions/hunterian-museum/a/poi-sig/409888/1342325",
      "destination": "Glasgow",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Scotland",
      "city": "Glasgow",
      "position": "superzone"
    }