Galileo’s finger
From the beautiful to the macabre, we all know that the Catholic Church has some very odd items preserved as relics in their buildings and vaults. They aren’t the only ones who hold onto some strange things. The Museum of the History of Science, now renamed the Galileo Museum, has two of their namesake’s fingers on display after they were removed from his body in the 18th Century from some over-zealous admirers.
It is displayed in a custom-made glass egg-shaped case, on a pedestal. Also removed from Galileo’s body over the years were another finger, a vertebra, and a tooth. It is a little odd that so many relics of Galileo survive to be visited, considering the Church believed him to be a heretic.