Medicinsk-historisk Museum Næstved

An old hospital turned time capsule of medicine

Step into the small yellow house facing Ringstedgade and you are entering the former Præstø County Hospital, built in 1817 and now part of Næstved Hospital. Inside, corridors and wards that once received patients have been transformed into exhibition rooms, yet the building still feels very much like a working hospital from another century. High ceilings, tall windows and simple, functional interiors create an atmosphere that is both sober and quietly moving. The museum focuses on the development of health science, with a special eye on how it unfolded in Zealand and at Næstved itself. Rather than glossy displays, you encounter dense collections of real objects: tools used by doctors and nurses, pieces of early machinery and furniture that once stood in local wards. Combined with the historic building, they give the impression that the medical staff have only just stepped out of the room.

Instruments, apparatus and the evolution of care

The core of the museum is its extensive collection of medical instruments and equipment spanning nearly two centuries. Glass syringes, metal thermometers, early X-ray devices, surgical saws and anaesthetic machines illustrate how quickly techniques changed. Many items look unfamiliar and a little unsettling, reminding you how experimental early treatments could be. Side by side with heavy, mechanical devices you find more everyday objects: enamel bedpans, pill bottles, nurses’ uniforms and hospital textiles. Together they show not only the progress in surgery and diagnostics, but also in hygiene, nursing and patient comfort. Simple labels help you understand what each object was used for and when it was in service, inviting you to imagine the patients who once depended on them.

A quiet medical library and stories in print

Attached to the museum is a compact specialist library dedicated to medical history. Shelves of textbooks, journals and reference works document how professional knowledge about the human body, disease and treatment has been written, debated and updated over time. Even if you are not here for research, the library adds another layer to the story: medicine is shown not only as practice with instruments, but also as an evolving body of ideas. Leafing through older volumes, you can see how language, illustrations and recommended therapies have shifted. Some theories now seem strange or outdated, others strikingly modern. The library underscores that medical progress is rarely a straight line; it is a process of trial, error and gradual refinement, shaped by local conditions as much as global discoveries.

The medicinal herb garden in the courtyard

Beyond the interior galleries, a small courtyard has been planted as a medicinal herb garden. Here, beds of traditional healing plants recall a time when hospital pharmacies depended heavily on what could be grown nearby. Labels introduce Latin names, historic uses and, in some cases, the active substances that later inspired modern pharmaceuticals. Strolling between the beds, you can compare different traditions: plants used for soothing pain, calming nerves, treating fevers or disinfecting wounds. The garden softens the clinical feel of the former hospital and highlights the continuity between herbal medicine and contemporary drugs, which often trace their origins back to humble roots, leaves or bark.

Guided insights from former medical professionals

One of the museum’s distinguishing features is that guided tours are offered by former doctors with a special interest in medical history. Their explanations help connect individual objects to broader developments: how anaesthesia transformed surgery, why infection control revolutionised ward design, or how local epidemics shaped hospital practice in Næstved. Because admission and guided tours are offered free of charge, the museum remains an accessible, low-key place to spend an hour or two. With its small scale, it is easy to explore at a gentle pace, pausing at whatever catches your eye. For anyone with a background or curiosity in healthcare, it offers a rare, tactile encounter with the tools and spaces that once defined life and death decisions in a provincial Danish hospital.