Myth of the Human Body Exhibit

Author's Note: This article uses virtual reality technology to provide an immersive experience. Click the images to view the 360-degree VRs. Adobe Flash 10 or higher is required. Average VR size is 1.5Mb each.

The body on the pedestal, in the act of throwing a discus, greets visitors as one enters the exhibit hall. On the left, one man in the poise to kick a suppose ball in mid-air, while another is about to catch a soccer ball, yet another in the process of shooting a hoop; on the right, at a distance away, an archer is preparing to fire his arrow, everyone immortalize in apparent tribute to the Olympic Games with the posters of the Greek gods hung above the ceiling.

This is the Myth of the Human Body exhibit, wherein actual bodies were subjected in a process called "plastination", a revolutionizing scientific technology that can bring out the vivid figures of the living human body as invented by a German anatomist, Gunther von Hagens. The process, usually takes a year to complete, can permanently preserved the texture of the skin tissues, the internal organs, the bones, the nerves, even down to the microscopic capillaries!

To the ancient Greeks, mythology was at the heart of everyday life. They regarded it as a part of their history. They used myth to explain natural phenomena, cultural variations, traditional enmities and friendships. It was a source of pride to be able to trace one's leaders' descent from a mythological hero or a god. Thus, the exhibit is divided into 7 sections, a re-composition of the human body and its systems by associating them with the gods' super bodies and characters.

Heracles (Hercules to the Romans), possessing exceptional strength and power, symbolizes the muscular and the skeletal systems that support the human body. Poseidon (Neptune), god of the seas, symbolizes the respiratory system. Dionysus (Bacchus), god of wine and abundance, symbolizes the digestive system. Hades (Pluto), god of the underworld, symbolizes the circulatory system of the heart which performs the endless regression of our body. Eros (Cupid), god of love, symbolizes the reproductive system. Zeus (Jupiter), ruler of the gods, symbolizes the brain and the nervous system. Lastly, Artemis (Diana), goddess of birth and fertility, symbolizes the cycle of birth, the embryonic system.

The Myth of the Human Body exhibit seeks to educate the public; it is the fruit of anatomical research and scientific breakthrough of over a thousand years that attempts to portrait the mysteries of life and enlightens the dignity of being human.

The exhibit venue is at the NeoBabylon Building, No. 9 Bayani Road, AFPOVAI, Taguig City. Opens at 10:30AM until 8:30PM. Entrance fee for adults is 350.00; senior citizens at 280.00, children 3 years old and below are free. Contact numbers are 889-5467 & 889-1724. The exhibit runs until April 17, 2011.

All VRs taken on November 9, 2010. The author can be reached at: fung@firefly.ph