Erotic Heritage Museum – Las Vegas, Nevada - Atlas Obscura

Erotic Heritage Museum

Thousands of artifacts relating to human sexuality, including the world's largest sex bike.  

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In the mid-’90s, one of the world’s largest collections of pornography belonged to a Methodist minister, Reverend Ted McIlvenna.

McIlvenna was a man with a mission, like many clergymen, and his was to to study and preserve artifacts related to human sexuality, including art, films, and literature. For over three decades, he collected everything from dirty postcards and posters to sexual treatises, and founded the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality, in San Francisco. 

A major portion of this unique personal collection became the bedrock of the Erotic Heritage Museum in Las Vegas. The museum attempts to display all the complex facets of the sexual experience and help people appreciate its importance and history.

It opened in 2008 and underwent a brief closure in 2014, during which time the administration of the museum changed, and many of the original displays were removed. An interactive 10-foot vulva, a carefully curated collection of Eva Braun’s lingerie, an installation of sex bikes (including the world’s largest), celebrity sex tapes, and an exploration of sex in space are but few of the exhibits that have been housed in the 24,000 square-foot space in the past few years. While many galleries are filled with artifacts relating to sexuality and erotica, some exhibits also explore the nexus between sex and political suppression. 

Know Before You Go

Handicap parking is limited, to the south side of the building. There is parking near the building on the north side, and in the rear of the stores, along the alleyway. It is an indoor museum, and there is an elevator to the 2nd floor. This is geared to patrons 18+ and are not easily offended. Be aware that a small portion of the exhibit discusses Nazi Germany and the Holocaust.


It is close to the Fashion Show mall and other Las Vegas Strip attractions. See website for prices and discounts.

In partnership with KAYAK

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