A SEVEN-inch long mummified penis valued at £100,000 has gone on display at a British museum.

The erect member was taken from a hanged English crook who became aroused as he swung from the gibbet during an 18th century hanging.
Now the Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History, in Hackney, London, has added the penis to its unusual collection of exhibits.
Bizarrely erections are common among those sentenced to the hangman’s noose as a result of lack of oxygen to the brain.
The ‘death erection’ mirrors the dangerous sexual practice of restricting oxygen to the brain for greater  sexual arousal, known as erotic asphyxiation.
But science has also suggested a death erection - technically called a priapism - can occur post mortem, and is attributed to pressure on the cerebellum at the base of the brain created by the noose.
Viktor Wynd, the museum's curator said: “It was removed from an 18th century Englishman who was hanged. 
“When people were hanged they'd nearly always get erections and nearly always release their seed.
“I think quite a few were made but this is the only one I've heard of. It's been around in different private collections and Oscar Wilde was an admirer.”
He explained how mummified body parts are supposed to have "magical properties" in some ancient cultures.

He said: "Body parts were frequent prerequisites of executioners and many different parts were supposed to have magical properties.
"For example, there is something called the 'Hands of Glory' - which is the mummified hands of hanged men which were believed to be extremely powerful." 
For a number of years, the fossilised penis was in a private collection before ending up at the museum.
Mr Wynd used money from a crowdfunding campaign to buy a Peruvian mummy, having fallen short of the original target.
It was unveiled yesterday this week and will remain on display for the next year.

Crook’s mummified 7 inch penis (worth £100K) goes on display at UK museum




A SEVEN-inch long mummified penis valued at £100,000 has gone on display at a British museum.

The erect member was taken from a hanged English crook who became aroused as he swung from the gibbet during an 18th century hanging.
Now the Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History, in Hackney, London, has added the penis to its unusual collection of exhibits.
Bizarrely erections are common among those sentenced to the hangman’s noose as a result of lack of oxygen to the brain.
The ‘death erection’ mirrors the dangerous sexual practice of restricting oxygen to the brain for greater  sexual arousal, known as erotic asphyxiation.
But science has also suggested a death erection - technically called a priapism - can occur post mortem, and is attributed to pressure on the cerebellum at the base of the brain created by the noose.
Viktor Wynd, the museum's curator said: “It was removed from an 18th century Englishman who was hanged. 
“When people were hanged they'd nearly always get erections and nearly always release their seed.
“I think quite a few were made but this is the only one I've heard of. It's been around in different private collections and Oscar Wilde was an admirer.”
He explained how mummified body parts are supposed to have "magical properties" in some ancient cultures.

He said: "Body parts were frequent prerequisites of executioners and many different parts were supposed to have magical properties.
"For example, there is something called the 'Hands of Glory' - which is the mummified hands of hanged men which were believed to be extremely powerful." 
For a number of years, the fossilised penis was in a private collection before ending up at the museum.
Mr Wynd used money from a crowdfunding campaign to buy a Peruvian mummy, having fallen short of the original target.
It was unveiled yesterday this week and will remain on display for the next year.

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