International Museum of Surgical Science
| Established | 1954 |
|---|---|
| Location | 1524 N. Lake Shore Dr. Chicago, Illinois |
| Coordinates | 41°54′37″N 87°37′36″W / 41.9103°N 87.6266°W |
| Type | Medical museum |
| Collection size | 7000+ medical artifacts |
| Public transit access |
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| Website | www |
The International Museum of Surgical Science is a museum located in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. It is operated by The International College of Surgeons and features exhibits dealing with various aspects of Eastern and Western medicine. Dr. Max Thorek founded the International College of Surgeons (ICS) in 1935 and originally intended for the museum to highlight the many artifacts and manuscripts the college housed, but artifacts were later added strictly for the museums collection. The museum opened to the public on September 9, 1954. The museum's exhibits are displayed by theme or surgical discipline. Displays include photographs, paintings and drawings, sculpture, medical equipment, skeletons, medical specimens and historic artifacts. The library contains more than 5,000 rare medical texts.
According to its mission statement, "The museum's Mission is to enrich people’s lives by enhancing their appreciation and understanding of the history, development, and advances in surgery and related subjects in health and medicine."
The museum is housed in a 1917 mansion designed by Howard Van Doren Shaw as a replica of the Petit Trianon at Versailles. The house was originally built for Chicago socialite Eleanor Robinson Countiss Whiting who died in 1931. The Coutiss family were the sole owners of the house until the International College of Surgeons acquired the building in 1950. The house is 4 stories tall and houses 10,000 square feet (930 m2) of public galleries that hold a number of permanent and temporary exhibits. The museum, as of 2025, rents rooms out for weddings and parties, and also hosts musical concerts, often in collaboration with other non-profit and for-profit organizations.
In addition to displaying medical artifacts the museum owns, since 1998, hosted a number of contemporary art exhibitions in an effort to broaden its appeal to visitors. In 2010, visitor numbers were at 20,000 a year, by 2013 this had increased to between 25,000 and 30,000.