Blog by Stephanie Seville, Heritage Officer at the Museum of Medicine and Health

In readiness for the new academic year, the Stopford Building is home to Student Body, a new exhibition from the Museum of Medicine and Health that brings together student experience, science, medicine and history. Through historical artefacts and digital content, it explores the people, innovation and discoveries that have shaped the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, past and present. 

A historical teaching model of the human brain.

Exploring the stories  

Student Body uses three themes, head, heart and movement, to examine the experiences, ideas and ambitions that connect generations of learners, educators and researchers. From early teaching tools and medical instruments to contemporary student reflections, the displays reveal how medical education and healthcare practice have evolved over time. 

New films capture the voices of students as they reflect on their experiences, aspirations and hopes for the future, creating a dialogue between past and present.

Displayed collections include goggles used in the adaption to the dark X-ray room, owned by Ian Isherwood. Neuro-radiology emerged under Isherwood and he was professor of diagnostic radiology for over nearly 20 years. In addition, an early 1900s fish heart teaching model. Zebrafish has become a powerful model organism for research on the development of the cardiovascular system because of their transparent embryos and rapid development. 

Connecting people, place and discovery 

The exhibition celebrates the history of one of the University’s most recognisable buildings. Named after Sir John Sebastian Bach Stopford, the building opened in 1973 as the home of medical and health sciences education in Manchester. Student Body continues that story by highlighting the people and discoveries that have contributed to the Faculty’s ongoing impact. 

Members of the public engaging with displays and artefacts in the Student Body exhibition.

A space for reflection and engagement 

The exhibition forms part of a wider effort to enhance spaces across FBMH and create opportunities for meaningful engagement with our shared history and social responsibility ambitions. 

This exhibition is kindly supported by the Beswick family and has been made possible by the generous work of many Faculty students and colleagues.  

For students, staff and visitors with access to the building, the exhibition offers a unique opportunity to explore how science, people and place have shaped the Faculty’s past and continue to influence its future. 

Additional information

Discover some of the digitised collections through Manchester Digital Collections. 

Find more heritage stories by visiting the museum’s online exhibition Instruments of Change.

To find out more about PPIE watch our short film, sign up to the monthly Public Engagement Digest, explore other posts in the PPIE themed categories on this blog, or contact srbmh@manchester.ac.uk.

Related