A WORLDLY COLLECTION: Ole Worm began collecting items for his cabinet in 1621, and continued until his death in 1654. Among the oddest pieces was a mechanical human figure (shown propped against the far back wall) that could move its arms at the turn of a hidden wheel. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION LIBRARIES
As Europeans extended their power and reach across the globe in the 16th century, collections of all sorts of curiosities and artifacts from around the world became the rage throughout Europe. Inside these sundry collections, called Wunderkammern or Kunstkammern (German for “wonder-rooms” or “art-rooms”), geological curiosities, such as geodes, nestled against South American feathered cloaks, medical rarities, or a painting of Vlad the Impaler. One of the most famous collections, that of the 17th-century Danish doctor Ole Worm, contained hundreds of natural history items carefully arranged in a room in his own home. Upon Worm’s death in 1654, the Danish Royal Kunstkammer, created by King Frederick III of Denmark, subsumed Worm’s collection. Luckily, a detailed catalog of his cabinet, written by Worm himself, was published ...
