Body Donation

ALL
ANATOMICAL SPECIMENS,
on display in the BODY WORLDS exhibitions and in PLASTINARIUM
ARE REAL.

They come from people who, during their lifetime, declared that their bodies should be made available after death for the training of doctors and the education of lay people.

Many donors stress that, in this way, they can benefit other people after their death. Through their selfless donation, they give us unique insights into the human body, insights which until now were reserved for doctors. For this we thank the living and already deceased body donors.

Facts

& FIGURES

The Heidelberg Institute for Plastination runs its own body donation programme with 20.008 registered body donors (as of December 2022).

NUMBER OF BODY DONORS
Worldwide 20.008
Europe (including Germany) 18.623
Germany 17.957
America (North, Central and South America) 1.358
Other countries 27

MOTIVATIONS

PEOPLE DECIDE TO DONATE THEIR BODY FOR PLASTINATION AFTER DEATH FOR VERY DIVERSE REASONS:

My body is too valuable to be burned or buried in the ground. This instruction is my own free will.

It is nice to know that my body will still serve a good purpose after my death. I would like to thank the people who make this possible. I thank the people who make this possible.

The body is only the shell that makes up a person. After death, it is important to live on in the memory of the bereaved. In my opinion, we do not need a grave, a tombstone, or a place where we mourn or remember for this.

I myself am a recipient of an organ donation (kidney) and with the donation of my body want to be useful for science and teaching.

Contact

For any questions, please contact our office
Body Donation Office

WHAT CAN I KNOW?
What should I do? What can I hope for?
WHAT IS HUMAN?
– IMMANUEL KANT
1724 – 1804, philosopher

HUMAN IS
nothing else but
THAT WHICH HE MAKES OF HIMSELF.
– Jean Paul Sartre
1905 – 1980, French philosopher

Detailed information

Download the BODY DONATION BROCHURE.

On our website on body donation you will find further informations and downloads:

BODY DONATION WEBSITE