Torture, toys, chocolate – 5 museums in Mexico that are far from ordinary
Mexico’s rich and eclectic cultural history is on display in the country’s capital at these quirky museums, cataloguing everything from chocolate to torture, toys to everyday objects
If museums were the sole measure of refinement, Mexico’s capital would be the most cultured place in the world. With more than 150 institutions, including some housing truly world-class collections, Mexico City’s museums offer something for everyone.
From the highbrow such as the world-famous National Museum of Anthropology, the city’s largest and most-visited, to tiny, obscure collections, the city has no shortage of curious cultural venues.
Let’s take a look at some of the most intriguing.
Museo del Juguete Antiguo México
What could have been a whimsical collection of childhood memories, the Museum of Antique Toys is a repository of weird and wonderful toys from Mexico's past.
A visit makes for a chaotic, sometimes alarming, but always fun experience.
Opened in 2006 and boasting 20,000 items from the massive toy collection of architect Roberto Shimizu Kinoshita, it spans a century of Mexican playthings from the 19th century to the 1980s.
This esoteric museum, housed in a building in the Doctores neighbourhood, also has a shop selling old toys. While it represents Mexico’s toy history, there is plenty to delight visitors of all nationalities and ages.
Museo del Objeto del Objeto
The Museum of the Object of Objects – a piece of wordplay where the first “object” refers to their purpose – exhibits everyday items in a collection for collection’s sake. Opened in 2010, its unique mission is to retain and study objects which otherwise might be considered junk.