The Louvre has the Mona Lisa, the Prado is famed for its collection of Velazquez and El Greco, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art has the Temple of Dendur. The Guggenheim has Gauguin and the Smithsonian has the first space capsule. But none of these celebrated museums has anything close to the likes of the Kansas Barbed Wire Museum, the International Banana Museum, or Leila’s Hair Museum.

While esteemed cultural institutions attract millions of visitors yearly, and are rightfully acclaimed for the value of their collections, they are far outnumbered by the many specialty (some would say oddball) museums, which have their own fanatic, albeit small, followings. Many of these museums pay homage to ordinary things, elevating them to fetishistic status. They are often a celebration of an individual’s passion, and embody the desire to reach out to others who may share this peculiar obsession.

Take the SULABH INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM OF TOILETS in New Delhi. Its founder, Dr. Bindeshwar Patak, claims that India was the first area of the world to have a public sewage disposal system, about 4,500 years ago. The Museum of Toilets meticulously documents the history of toilets and has an extensive collection of privies, chamber pots, toilet furniture, bidets, and water closets dating back to A.D. 1145. From Austrian floral-painted porcelain urinals and a replica of King Louis XIII’s “throne within a throne” (this allowed him to “ease himself” in public), to experimental microwave toilets which use less water and “compost” waste, the museum is a fascinating repository of all things toilet. It also houses a collection of international poetry based on bodily excretions (obviously for some a great source of poetic inspiration).

A similarly themed institution, the MADISON MUSEUM OF BATHROOM TISSUE, Madison, Wis., has over 2,500 rolls of toilet paper (“an impressive assemblage of toilet paper from across the country and around the world”) from Ellis Island, Caesar’s Palace, the Alamo, and the like. There are examples of celebrity-signed toilet paper (Madonna), vintage toilet paper from the late 1800s, and yes, toilet paper poetry (is there a common thread here?).

The BRITISH LAWNMOWER MUSEUM, located in a seaside resort in Lancashire County, proudly calls itself “one of the world’s leading authorities on vintage lawnmowers” and “the largest import and export specialist in antique garden machinery.” The current exhibition features “Lawnmowers of the Rich and Famous” and its permanent collection houses the first solar-powered robot mower as well as one that is only 2 inches tall. Closet lawnmower enthusiasts can buy the DVD Lawnmower World: A Glimpse into the Fascinating History of Garden Machinery.