Myth of the Human Body

Myth of the Human Body officially opened in 2010 but has been extended (so many times) until February 29, 2012. I've only heard of the exhibit in late 2011

The Neobabylon building, an ode to Roman architecture. Photo from here 

One of the statues that will greet you upon entering the exhibit 

An inside look at a person's body 

Woman holding organs 

One of my favorite exhibits, a look at the stages of fetal development. This is by far the creepiest of the bunch

Yesterday, I was at Bonifacio Global City with my friend Myk to check out the Myth of the Human Body exhibit at the Neobabylon Building in AFPOVAI. It exhibits the human anatomy using real body specimens and parts, preserved through a process of plastination, involving embalming, dehydrating, boiling, and hardening which was developed by Dr. Gunther von Hagens in the 70's.

The exhibit is divided into seven, each dedicated to a specific body system and a Greek god associated with it. There was the muscular/skeletal system (Heracles), respiratory system (Poseidon), digestive system (Dionysus), reproductive system (Eros), nervous system (Zeus), the circulatory system (Hades), and the fetal system (Artemis). The exhibits are highly detailed and therefore, quite disturbing. I did have fun seeing internal organs piece by piece, but didn't recognize many of them because not everything had explanations.

Myk and I didn't go with the guided tour so the educational aspect was lost in our amazement and sometimes, disgust. Perhaps the most disturbing exhibits were the fetal system where there were actual specimens of a baby from its first month to its last. Knowing that these are actual infants plastinated made it even creepier. There were also jars filled with fetuses of various sizes and babies with hydrocephalus and anacephalus, a disorder where the baby doesn't have a forebrain (the largest part of the brain) and a portion of the skull and scalp.

The venue, the Neobabylon building is a work of art. The exterior is filled with mock statues of gods and the interiors resemble a grand Roman palace. I tried to get the history of the place and see if it was specifically built for Myth or if it was designed that way. I couldn't find anything but it was amazing.

As for the exhibit, it wasn't maintained. Some of the organs were dusty and security was lax. When Myk and I went, we had a feeling that we were the only ones there, considering it was a Saturday. We went two hours before closing, though, so they might have gone in the morning. But it felt deserted, adding to the creepiness factor. Myth was informative and fun, but not as exciting as I thought it would be. But you guys can check it out, because it's having its last extension until February 29, 2012 (not the first time I heard of that). Tickets cost P350 and is open everyday from 10.30 AM - 8.30 PM. Myth of the Human Body is located at Neobabylon Building, 9 Bayani Road, AFPOVAI, Taguig City.

After the exhibit, we weren't feeling hungry (the pieces turned us off from eating) but we had dinner at Silk in Serendra. The Thai food was standard, but I know a better Thai place that serves cheaper food. Dessert courtesy of Patchi and McDonald's, and of course, a trip to High Street wouldn't be complete without a visit to Fully Booked. I still have my reading list, so I only got a copy of The Philippine Star for my article.