Galileo’s Middle Finger

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Galileo’s Middle Finger
Photo: Atlas Obscura
“It is a remarkable bit of irony, the finger: venerated, kept in a shrine, subjected to the same treatment as a saintly relic. But this finger belonged to no saint. It is the long bony finger of an enemy of the church, a heretic. As with a fine wine, it took some years for Galileo’s finger to age…”
— Atlas Obscura
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Atlas ObscuraOct 16

Where to See the World’s Most Famous Preserved Body Parts

Sure, you’ve seen a dead body before, but have you ever seen a thumb preserved in salt? How about a saint’s heart shrouded in gold? Beyond the normal displays of skeletons in medical museums and holy leaders’ bodies in churches and temples, there’s a whole world of bits and pieces to explore. Throughout history, body parts have been taken as trophies during wartime, worshipped as miraculous hea…

preserved middle finger of an astronomer

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