Museum für Verhütung und Schwangerschaftsabbruch
Private museum on the Vienna Gürtel about the cultural history of contraception, pregnancy testing and abortion, from antiquity to the present.
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About the museum
The Museum of Contraception and Abortion (MUVS) was founded in 2003 by the gynecologist Christian Fiala, who has worked in family planning in Austria and abroad for decades. It was essentially built by three people: Fiala, the science journalist and archivist Susanne Krejsa MacManus, and the museum designer Barbara Sommerer. Since no comparable institution existed anywhere in the world, both the content and the forms of presentation had to be developed from scratch; for about two years, a team searched Austrian archives for documents on the ban on contraception and on abortion.
In March 2007, the museum opened on the first floor of a building on the Mariahilfer Gürtel, opposite the Gynmed outpatient clinic. It is run by a non-profit association and financed through admission fees, tours, donations and, above all, a bequest from the founder's family. The MUVS was awarded the Austrian Museum Seal of Quality and was nominated for the European Museum of the Year Award in 2010.
Three rooms take visitors through the history of contraception from ancient Egyptian recipes to future methods, through the development of the pregnancy test, and through the legal history of abortion since Maria Theresa. The roughly 6,000 inventoried objects, books, posters and documents now in the collection, including a very extensive collection of birth control pills, are complemented by case histories, listening stations and drawers to open. Sex education workshops for school classes are a particular focus.
Highlights
- The world's only museum on contraception and abortion
- Extensive collection of birth control pills
- History of the pregnancy test, up to the frog test
- Legal history of abortion from Maria Theresa to today
- Interactive installation "Life Planner" on the effectiveness and cost of contraceptive methods
Permanent exhibition
- Verhütung, Schwangerschaftstest und Schwangerschaftsabbruch – Three rooms trace how people have tried to control their fertility since antiquity, with objects, case histories, listening stations and parliamentary debates up to the present day.
- Founded
- 2003
- Operated by
- Museum für Verhütung und Schwangerschaftsabbruch (gemeinnütziger Verein)
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €10 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €8Students, apprentices |
| Children & teens | €4School pupils €4. |
| Students & apprentices | €8Apprentices too |
| Groups | –Groups by arrangement with a guided tour only (max. 26 people per tour). |
| Tour for students (up to age 26, approx. 90 min.) | €12Per person; flat rate of €90 for groups of fewer than 8 people |
| Combined tour of MUVS and Gynmed outpatient clinic – students | €16Per person; flat rate of €120 for groups of fewer than 8 people |
| Combined tour of MUVS and Gynmed outpatient clinic – adults | €20Per person; flat rate of €120 for groups of fewer than 6 people |
€6 with the Vorteilsclub card Wien. Partner of "Hunger auf Kunst und Kultur" (the Kulturpass is not valid for tours and workshops). Cash only.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible
- Elevator: no information
- Accessible restroom: no information
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
According to the museum, accessible without barriers; the exhibition is on the 1st floor.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Westbahnhof
U3 and U6, tram lines 5, 6, 9, 18, 52 and 60 – stop Wien Westbahnhof.
By car
No on-site parking at the museum.
WIPARK Westbahnhof/Felberstraße and Mercure Wien Westbahnhof (Lohrgasse 3) parking garages.
The museum is on the 1st floor on the Mariahilfer Gürtel – not to be confused with Mariahilfer Straße.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes · approx. 1.5 hrs |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes (DE, EN) |
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Audio guides (contraception, abortion) are available in the museum on request, by telephone at local rate (+43 1 236 300 00 or 01) or as MP3 on the website. Tours and sex education workshops for school classes, young people, students and adults only outside opening hours by registration via email at fuehrungen@muvs.org (questions: +43 699 178 178 06); combined tours including a visit to the Gynmed outpatient clinic across the street are possible. |
