At the former “Royal Institute of Human Anatomy”, inside the University Hospital, numerous historical specimens of great cultural value have been housed since its establishment (1932). This heritage has been gradually collected by the Directors of the Institute, who succeeded one another over time and, today, constitutes a collection that testifies to the teaching methods and scientific instruments used for centuries in the transmission of the teachings of one of the key subjects for the preparation of generations of medical doctors.
Ancient volumes, anatomical waxes and other relics of historical interest used in the past for teaching purposes (instruments for anatomical dissection, instruments for observing histological preparations under the microscope, etc.) have found space in the setting of the “Human Anatomy Collection Room”. Of particular interest are the anatomical waxes, depicting heads and other body regions (artifacts attributed to the Sicilian wax modelling school) and some models of embryo-foetal development. Also of considerable interest is the large Anatomical Room, used for carrying out exercises on human and animal organs (sheep, ox, pig, etc.) or on plastic models. In this Room, one of the first transmission electron microscopes used by the Institute can also be seen.

The history of Anatomy in Palermo begins with Giovanni Filippo Ingrassia (1510–1580), a contemporary of Andrea Vesalio, considered the father of anatomical and medical studies in Palermo. Ingrassia was the Protomedico of Sicily and was famous for having contained an epidemic of plague with very innovative measures for the time. Upon his death, his students founded the Academy of Anatomy, which later became the Academy of Medical Sciences, which would represent the nucleus of the Medical Faculty at the establishment of the University of Palermo in 1806. The first professor of Anatomy at the University of Palermo was Giovanni Gorgone who introduced the first studies of pathological anatomy in Palermo. The first “Anatomical Institute” of the University of Palermo was inaugurated at the Ospedale della Concezione, at the Bastioni di Porta Carini, on 27 October 1884 by Francesco Randacio, who would be followed by numerous illustrious teachers and researchers; Among these, we remember: Emerico Luna (1882-1963), founder of the Italian Society of Anatomy and supporter of the transfer of the Anatomical Institute to the University Hospital, in its current location; Enzo Nesci (1934-1983), a formidable and lamented Master, who passed away prematurely, whose fame at a national and international level enjoys everlasting memory.