Bringing home the first ultrasound visions of a growing fetus is indeed and exciting moment for expectant parents. But thanks to Jorge Lopes’ PhD program at Royal College of Art, parents can now have a 3-D life sized model of the “bun in the oven” to take home.

Dr. Lopes has pioneered a process to convert ultrasound and MRI data into plaster models.

The technology is a rapid prototyping machine; a 3-D printer that “builds” the model with plastic powder in much the same way a regular printer builds an image with ink.

The replicas are an odd fusion of art and science, with far reaching implications (some of which include helping blind mothers to bond with babies prior to birth, or detecting developmental abnormalities).

Lopes researched the practical implications of model making in medicine over the centuries, and began his work with images of mummies, dinosaurs…then fetuses.

Some of the models can be rather haunting.

Despite the fact that the fetuses were undoubtedly quite comfortable in their cozy wombs when the images were captured, for some reason the sculptures appear frozen in a tortured moment of time. At least to me. Maybe it’s different when you’re looking at your own offspring.

I don’t necessarily recommend carrying these models around to show off, in lieu of classic ultrasound images. Though I personally wouldn’t be put off if a friend reached into her purse and pulled out a plastic embryo…I can’t speak for the rest of the population.

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