To Your Health

One of the most unusual museums in Mexico City is the "Museo del Objeto del Objeto" (Museum of the Objective of the Object) or MODO for short.  It has a collection of more than 30,000 ordinary objects... many of which would be considered junk... which span two centuries.  The emphasis of the collection is advertising and packaging.  The museum is located in an "art nouveau" house in the Roma neighborhood.  The collection is too large to be shown in its entirety, so special exhibits are held, each one with a theme.  I have been to MODO a couple of times, and last Wednesday I went there again to see their current exhibit "Mente Sana, Cuerpo Sano" (Healthy Mind, Healthy Body).  Here was an eclectic assortment of objects drawn from the collection dealing with health and medicine.

The exhibit begins with a case full of patent medicines from the late 1800s.  Some of them were totally ineffective... some of them were harmful.

   

"Dr. Ross" was a well-known brand of medicines in Mexico.  The company was founded in 1890.  One of their products, "Píldoras de Vida" (Pills of Life) claimed to be the most popular remedy in the whole world.

"If your liver is lazy, do what millions of people are doing.  Take Ross Pills, the anti-bilious laxative."

Dr. Andreu's balsamic cigarettes claim to give immediate relief to asthma.  Oh my!

By the late 1800s, products from the pharmaceutical giant Bayer were sold in Mexico.

"For you and for me."

"Bayer Tonic enriches the blood, give strength and vigor"

Bayer's "cafiaspirina" which contains aspirin and caffeine, is still sold in Mexico.

"What shall I do for this pain?"

"Cafiaspirina, my love!"

The predecessor of the modern pharmacy was the "bótica" (apothecary).  These apothecary jars contained the ingredients mixed to make remedies.  Among them are sassafras, powdered sulphur and opium (!).

 

Some brand names well known in the U.S.

"Always happy and in love with "Colgated" smile and breath"

"Youth and beauty in the creamy foam of Palmolive soap"

A gift box with Johnson's baby products.

Alka-Seltzer's "Speedy" character is called "Pron-tito" in Spanish.

Two products which still exist in Mexico are "Mejoral" for pain relief, and "Picot", grape salt, for acid indigestion.

Companies often used religious imagery in their advertisements.

The Virgin of Guadalupe and Alka-Seltzer

It was really a very interesting exhibit.