Museo de las Momias (Mummy Museum)

Wikipedia explains that the Pantheon of Santa Paula opened in 1861 after the Laws of Reform moved burials from churchyards to municipal cemeteries for public health reasons. Families kept above-ground niches by paying an annual fee, and if the fee lapsed the remains could legally be exhumed so the space could be reused. In 1865 workers began exhuming bodies from niches whose fees had not been renewed. They expected skeletons but found some bodies that had mummified, with skin, hair and clothing intact. The first mummy found was reportedly that of the French physician Dr. Remigio Leroy, who became the first to be publicly displayed. Exhumations tied to the burial tax continued until 1958, and workers kept many of the best-preserved bodies rather than reburying them, forming the basis of the later collection.

Visitors were admitted by the late nineteenth century, and the collection became a local tourist attraction. The museum opened in 1969 beside the cemetery. Wikipedia reports that it holds 111 mummies, including men, women, children and infants, of which 59 were on public display as of 2007. A mummified fetus is among the exhibits, often described as one of the smallest mummified remains on public display. The collection has appeared in popular culture. The writer Ray Bradbury visited the catacombs and wrote the short story The Next in Line, the director Werner Herzog used footage of mummies in Nosferatu the Vampyre in 1979, and the wrestler Santo starred in a 1970 film set around the mummies.

The bodies were long considered natural mummies produced by the local burial environment. Wikipedia notes that scientific studies have found evidence that some were at least partially embalmed, so the common popular explanation, which attributes the preservation to the soil's mineral content, should be treated as unproven. The article does not give further detail on the exact conditions.

The mummies are fragile human remains, and conservation has been a subject of public debate, including criticism of traveling exhibitions. The museum is a sensitive site, and a respectful approach suits the subject, which is as much about Guanajuato's burial practices and history as about the macabre. Located in a UNESCO-listed city known for its mining past, the museum is typically combined with the city's historic center. A private guided visit can give the surrounding history of the cemetery and the burial laws.