Science & Technology, 2nd prize
Marc Steinmetz
+49 photo for Focus
+49 photo for Focus
01 January, 1997
German anatomist Professor Gunther von Hagens has developed a method of preserving human bodies or parts of them which he calls 'plastination'.
Initially designed to create detailed anatomical preparations for educational and medical purposes, the products of plastination are now also exhibited in highly controversial shows. At the private institute which he founded to be free from restrictions, it takes Von Hagens and his team up to 800 hours to prepare a whole body by replacing all water and fat with silicone or other polymers. The corpses are obtained through the institute's own body donation program.
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