Mutter Museum receives package with 2 fetuses in a jar, under investigation by police

PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia police are investigating an unusual incident that occurred at Mutter Museum Tuesday after they say the museum received a strange package. 

According to police, at around 11:36 a.m., museum staff reported receiving a package containing two preserved fetuses in a glass jar. 

Police immediately launched an investigation and are working to determine the source of the package. 

An anonymous donor sent the package that startled the museum's curator, Anna Dhody.  The package addressed to her at the museum had no return address, just a letter inside. 

She said she fortunately read first, before looking at what else was sent.  

Then she saw what the person who described themselves in the letter as a retired physician had sent, the two preserved fetuses in glass jars.  

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JULY 21: The exterior of the Mütter Museum is pictured in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 21, 2023. (Photo by Hannah Beier for the Washington Post.)

The fetuses were turned over to the Medical Examiner's Officer for further investigation.

The museum opened in 1863 and it's considered America's top museum of medical history with many displays of preserved anatomical specimens. Many examining the history and diagnosis of human diseases.

Anyone with information related to this incident is encouraged to contact Central Detective Division at 215-686-3093 or call/text the PPD tipline at 215-686-TIPS (8477).