UNSW Museum of Human Disease

UNSW Museum of Human Disease A unique collection of over 1500 specimens showing how disease affects the body.

Mission Statement
The Museum of Human Disease is dedicated to:
Inspiring interest in personal and public health; promoting the understanding of medicine by providing access to resources, innovative exhibitions, educational programs as well as insight into the relevance of biomedical research; playing an important role in understanding of disease processes and disease prevention for UNSW students, health industry staff and the wider community.

We’re opening our doors for Open Day! 🖤💛Visit the UNSW Museum of Human Disease on Saturday 5 September, from 9 am to 4 p...
30/08/2026

We’re opening our doors for Open Day! 🖤💛

Visit the UNSW Museum of Human Disease on Saturday 5 September, from 9 am to 4 pm.

This is the only Saturday all year that the Museum is open, so make the most of it and come explore human health, anatomy and disease.

We’d love to welcome you! 🧠🫀

💜 Wear it Purple Day is all about visibility, inclusion and creating spaces where LGBTQIA+ people feel seen, supported a...
28/08/2026

💜 Wear it Purple Day is all about visibility, inclusion and creating spaces where LGBTQIA+ people feel seen, supported and celebrated.

So today feels like the perfect time to share an event we are really excited about for UNSW Diversity Festival 2026 🌈

Conversations that matter: Organ Donation, Identity and Inclusion

Join the Museum of Human Disease and DonateLife NSW for a panel discussion exploring organ and tissue donation through the lens of LGBTQIA+ health, identity and inclusion.

Hear from Cyd Williams, Michelle Daley and Gregory Provenzano as they share clinical expertise and lived experience around transplantation, tissue donation, eligibility, trust and the questions people may have about donation.

There will also be an audience Q&A, light refreshments and time to explore the Museum afterwards.

📅 Wednesday 23 September
🕛 12–2pm
📍 Museum of Human Disease, UNSW Kensington
🎟️ Free event

Whether you are a UNSW student, staff member or part of the wider community, we would love to have you join the conversation.

Bookings are now open. Scan the QR code or visit our Eventbrite page to reserve your place.
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/conversations-that-matter-organ-donation-identity-and-inclusion-tickets-1995627338089

A couple of months ago, we met Jonah Kinsella, an emerging artist from Sydney, when he visited the Museum of Human Disea...
27/08/2026

A couple of months ago, we met Jonah Kinsella, an emerging artist from Sydney, when he visited the Museum of Human Disease to explore the impact of smoking on the body, to supplement his portfolio development.

Jonah shared his artwork with us, and we were immediately impressed by the creativity, thought and powerful message behind his work, and we are delighted to be able to showcase his work at the Museum.

His Inheritance artwork series explores the impact of smoking through two striking works:

Inheritance: Accumulation - is a life-sized transparent lung model filled with discarded cigarette packaging, to***co, cigarette butts and loose to***co collected from the streets of Sydney.

Inheritance: Specimens - feature anatomical drawings created directly onto discarded cigarette packaging. Brand names, health warnings, folds and tears remain visible beneath the ink, connecting the product with the organs to***co can damage.

Jonah’s work encourages us to look beyond the packaging and consider what smoking can leave behind.

His artworks are now on temporary display at the Museum of Human Disease, come in and take a look Monday to Friday, 10am - 4pm.

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us last Thursday night, at the Museum of Human Disease for Anatomy According to ...
27/08/2026

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us last Thursday night, at the Museum of Human Disease for Anatomy According to Hollywood with Dr Kosta Kotsidis from the UNSW School of Biomedical Sciences.

Together we explored what Hollywood gets right, what it gets spectacularly wrong, and why the real human body is even more fascinating than fiction. From cartoons and comedies to horror films and medical dramas, it was a night full of laughs, movie myths and plenty of anatomy!

We're also incredibly grateful to ABC Drive NSW and Jess McGuire for featuring Dr Kosta Kotsidis, helping us share the excitement of the event and the Museum with an even wider audience.

Thank you to everyone who attended, asked fantastic questions and helped make it such a memorable evening. We can't wait to bring you more public events that celebrate science in fun and unexpected ways.

Our National Science Week Finals Event brought together student finalists, teachers, families and our wonderful partners...
26/08/2026

Our National Science Week Finals Event brought together student finalists, teachers, families and our wonderful partners for a day of learning, connection and celebration at the Museum of Human Disease.

From hearing inspiring stories about organ and tissue donation, to getting hands-on with our simulated blood typing workshop, exploring the Museum and finally celebrating our competition winners, it was such a fantastic way to bring the students’ hard work to life.

Our finalists spent months using science communication to raise awareness about organ and tissue donation, and seeing them share their ideas, ask questions and engage with the science was a real highlight.

A huge congratulations again to all our finalists and winners, and thank you to everyone who helped make the day so special, especially to the team at DonateLife NSW.

We still have plenty more Science Week moments to share, so keep an eye on our socials!

🫀 Science Week may be over, but we have so much to share from our incredible week! One of the highlights of our Science ...
23/08/2026

🫀 Science Week may be over, but we have so much to share from our incredible week!
One of the highlights of our Science Week Finals Event was hearing from Emma and Jacob Evans, who generously shared their personal transplant journeys with our students, teachers and families.
Their stories brought home exactly why raising awareness about organ, tissue and stem cell donation matters and why the campaigns created by our student finalists have the potential to make a real difference.
Emma and Jacob have turned their experiences into advocacy through Steps for Second Chances, encouraging more people to learn about donation, have the conversation and understand the impact one person can have. 🌱
A huge thank you to Emma and Jacob for sharing your stories so openly and helping our students see the real people and experiences behind the science. 🫶
👉 Follow Steps for Second Chances:
And stay tuned, we have plenty more Science Week moments to share! 🔬🎉

23/08/2026

🏆 THE RESULTS ARE IN! 🎉🫀

What a Science Week! It’s been a huge few days at the Museum, but we can finally share the winners of our 2026 Science Week Competition! 🌟

More than 1,800 votes were cast for our finalists, along with some absolutely incredible comments and messages of support. Swipe through the videos to see if you voted for our overall winner in each category!

Our partners at DonateLife NSW were incredibly impressed by the creativity, science and thought that went into this year’s entries, and so were we!

🎥 So, without further ado… meet our 2026 winners!

Chloe L (Carlingford HS)
Ella L (Burwood Girls HS)
Rani S (Hurlstone Agricultural HS)

A HUGE congratulations to our winners, finalists and every student who took part. You helped start important conversations about organ and tissue donation and showed just how powerful young voices can be in science communication. 👏

We have plenty more to share from our Science Week celebrations, but for now… CONGRATULATIONS! 🏆🎉

21/08/2026

Thank you to Jess McGuire for having Dr Kosta Kotsidis on the show today to chat about Anatomy According to Hollywood! 🎙️
From blockbuster blunders to the amazing realities of the human body, Kosta explored some of Hollywood’s biggest anatomical misconceptions, including the heart, the skeleton and one very relatable bodily function that sparked plenty of laughs!
If you missed the interview, you can listen now!
Interested in learning more?
The UNSW Museum of Human Disease is open to the public Monday to Friday, come visit to learn more!

Did you miss out on tickets to Anatomy According to Hollywood last night? 🎬🦴Good news, you can still catch a little of t...
21/08/2026

Did you miss out on tickets to Anatomy According to Hollywood last night? 🎬🦴

Good news, you can still catch a little of the movie-meets-anatomy magic today!

Tune in to ABC Drive NSW at 4:45 pm to hear Dr Kosta Kotsidis chat with Jess McGuire about what Hollywood gets right, what it gets very wrong, and why real human anatomy is even more fascinating than the movies.

📻 ABC Drive NSW
🕓 Today at 4:45 pm
🎬 Anatomy According to Hollywood

🧠 What happens when a museum specimen needs repair?For Day 2 of our Meet the Scientist series, we're going behind the sc...
17/08/2026

🧠 What happens when a museum specimen needs repair?

For Day 2 of our Meet the Scientist series, we're going behind the scenes with Claire and one of her most challenging repairs.

After an accident left this brain specimen with multiple breaks and gaps, Claire drew on her specialist knowledge of anatomy and preservation to carefully restore it for display. 🔬

It's science that requires problem-solving, precision and a lot of patience!

And there's an important reason this work matters. 💙

Our specimens are here because of the extraordinary generosity of people who chose to donate their bodies to education. Through careful preservation and ongoing care, their gift continues to support future generations learning about anatomy, pathology and human health.

What you see in the Museum is only part of the science. 🔬

Address

Samuels Building (F25)
Kensington, NSW
2052

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 10am - 4:30pm
Thursday 10am - 4:30pm
Friday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+61290650330

Website

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