Las Vegas’ Mob Museum, officially known as the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, offers a comprehensive journey through the history of the US mafia. With hundreds of artifacts and immersive storylines, the museum provides an engaging experience for visitors. Among its interactive exhibits are the Crime Lab and Firearm Training Simulator. Recently, the museum expanded its offerings with a newly redesigned section on ‘The Mob in Pop Culture.’ This exhibit showcases artifacts, costumes, and images that highlight the influence of organized crime on American popular culture. Notable items include two cast-worn costume suits from Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, a prop revolver used by Robert de Niro in The Godfather Part II, and DEA Agent Steve Murphy’s copy of the script for the first episode of the Netflix series Narcos.
In addition to its main exhibits, the museum houses The Underground, a Prohibition history exhibition featuring a speakeasy and distillery. For those unable to visit the States, Europe offers its own insights into crime history. The No Mafia Memorial in Palermo, Sicily, takes visitors through Italy’s most significant historical events in the fight against the mafia. Located in the historic Palazzo Gulì, the memorial honors judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, both assassinated by the mafia.
For a deeper dive into medieval crime, the Medieval Crime Museum in Rothenburg, Germany, provides a comprehensive look at legal history. Housed in the former St John’s monastery, it is Europe’s largest legal museum. The exhibits, which include torture devices such as original stretching benches and thumb screws, are not for the faint of heart. Visitors can also explore medieval interrogation protocols and examine shame masks used to punish minor crimes.
The Criminology Museum, part of the Medical School of the University of Athens in Greece, delves into some of the most notorious crimes from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Forensic researchers will find a wealth of information in the human remains collection, which includes mummified and skeletal remains, as well as formalin-preserved specimens. Notable exhibits include the embalmed severed heads of famous Greek outlaws from the early 20th century. Other collections feature nooses and ligatures, wax models of wounds and injuries, medico-legal documents, and a toxicology section with drug use paraphernalia.
The True Crime Museum in Hastings, East Sussex, explores a wide range of lawbreakers, from serial killers and gangsters to poisoners and stalkers. Exhibits include a lethal injection deathbed, the acid containers used by John George Haigh to dissolve his victims, and the love letters written in prison by Richard Ramirez, also known as the Night Stalker. The museum also features a surround-sound Cinema Cave where visitors can listen to the chilling confessions of convicted criminals.
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