https://cdnph.upi.com/ph/st/th/6081785171141/2026/upi_com/486d5700e676200a32cf28ed01157391/v1.5/Gunther-Von-Hagens-inventor-of-plastination-dies-at-81.jpg" /> Gunther Von Hagens, the inventor of the method of preserving the human body called plastination, died on Friday in a German hospital at the age of 81.