A penis shaped sign marks an otherwise nondescript building letting visitors know they are entering the Icelandic Phallological Museum in Husavik, about 298 miles northeast of Reykjavik. According to their website, “it is probably the only museum in the world to contain a collection of phallic specimens.” Probably.

Inside, visitors can admire a collection of 261 well-preserved penises from 90 different species. From a 1.7 meter tall sperm whale member to a 2 mm hamster penis, they are all displayed in glass jars full of formaldehyde or mounted on walls.


The collection is the brainchild of owner Sigurdur Hjartarson, who started out with a single bull’s penis. At that time, it was an odd hobby (!) and over the years, other penises (penii?) have been added to the collection, donated by cooperative hunters and biologists.

The only species not presented in the collection is the homosapiens, although that will likely change in the future. Four men have already pledged to donate their penises to the museum to have them preserved for posterity, after their deaths. For now, the only representation of the human penis is a life size plastic mould of a 52 year old American, who is one of the prospective donors.

Interest in the museum is increasing – last summer 6000 visitors dropped by – and Hjartarson has even begun to make a profit off his collection.

On April 12, 2011 the museum installed its first human specimen. Patron Páll Arason donated his penis to the museum on his death. Arason is described as a former tourism worker who died on January 5, 2011, in the nearby town of Akureyri at the age of 95. Thorvaldur Ingvarsson, the medical director of Akureyri's hospital, didn't give a cause of death but said the specimen was removed from the body under the supervision of a doctor.