What is the ruling on embalming animals or removing their skin and flesh and preserving their skeletal remains for the purpose of display or education, and what is the ruling on using human skeletal models made of plastic for the purpose of education?
Embalming or preserving the skeleton of an animal that is permissible to eat and has been slaughtered according to Islamic rites, for educational or decorative purposes, is permissible. The general principle concerning things is permissibility unless there is specific evidence that prohibits it. This does not resemble prohibited statues because it is the actual animal or a part of it, and not merely an imitation of Allah's creation. As for using the skeleton of an animal not slaughtered according to Islamic rites, there is a difference of opinion regarding the purity of the bones of a dead animal (carrion). Some scholars consider them pure and permissible to benefit from. As for human skeletons made of plastic for educational purposes, they are permissible, by analogy with the permissibility of dissecting a deceased person's body for learning. These do not fall under the ruling of prohibited statues because they are bare bones, similar to a headless statue.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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