OFFBEAT MUSEUMS : Some of Los Angeles’ unusual museums with specialties ranging from bananas to brassieres offer special kinds of insights into a variety of unexpected treasures.

1. WEIRD MUSEUM

1641 Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood A collection of real mummies, skeletons, the reputed remains of a werewolf and the “Hand of Glory,” a 300-year-old mummified hand of an executed murderer that allegedly has the power to grant invisibility. Hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. Admission $3. (213) 462-7078.

2. INTERNATIONAL BRASSIERE MUSEUM * 6608 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood Frederick’s of Hollywood, the lingerie vendor, has set aside a portion of its Hollywood Boulevard store as the International Brassiere Museum, featuring specimens believed to have had “far-reaching effect” on the development of the undergarment as an art object. Visitors will find the first dress worn on television by comic Milton Berle, pantaloons from Ava Gardner, a slip from Lana Turner, a nightgown from Judy Garland, a peignoir worn by Mae West and Madonna’s bustier, which miraculously reappeared after it was stolen during the 1992 riots. Hours: 10 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9:45 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. (213) 466-8506.

3. BANANA MUSEUM * 2524 El Molino Ave., Altadena A top-banana photographer and photo equipment salesman named Ken Bannister shows off his 15,000 banana-shaped treasures, ranging from a banana purse, a banana sequined with an image of Michael Jackson, banana umbrella, pup tent, puppets, golf putter and a movie poster of “Herbie Goes Bananas.” The museum is open to members of the International Banana Club and guests by appointment only. (818) 798-2272.

4. AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PATRIOTIC HISTORY MUSEUM * 1918 N. Rosemead Blvd., South El Monte Don Michelson, an officer in the Quartermaster Corps during World War II and his son, Craig, work every day at breathing new life into old weapons at their Army camp-like museum. At the 7 1/2-acre outdoor display that resembles a staging area for an invasion, visitors will find Jeeps, trucks, ambulances, self-propelled antitank guns, war uniforms and 30-ton Sherman tanks. The museum loans out its drivable tanks and trucks to the American Legion and other groups to use in parades. Open on dry weekends from noon to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $3. (818) 442-1776.

5. SEDLY PECK MEMORIAL MUSEUM * 23400 E. Fork Road, Follows Camp, Azusa Sedley Peck, born in 1889, was often called the “mayor of Azusa Canyon” in deference to his popularity among canyon residents and his trunk full of notes, mementos, clippings and photographs that recounted the rich saga of the San Gabriel Canyon. The museum, which displays much of Peck’s mining memorabilia, is in the Henry C. Roberts store, the oldest building in the San Gabriel Mountains. Take California 39 about 17 miles from the Azusa turnoff on the Foothill Freeway (210) and then turn east, or right, to East Fork Road for another three miles. Open on weekends by appointment only. (818) 910-1100.

6. RALPH W. MILLER GOLF LIBRARY AND MUSEUM * 1 Industry Hills Parkway, City of Industry Guests at the Industry Hills Sheraton Resort are often surprised to find the Ralph W. Miller Golf Library and Museum. The library collection offers more than 5,000 volumes on the science and history of the game, including a 1597 edition of “Laws and Actes of Parliament,” recording the edict of 1495 that banned Scots from playing golf because Scottish lords felt that people should be learning archery to defend their lands rather than hitting balls. The museum’s memorabilia includes score cards, postcards, medals, artwork, a tee collection, golf ball exhibit, Babe Didrikson Zaharias’ golf knickers and golf bags, and the clubs of Bobby Jones, Craig Woods, Amy Alcott and other famous players. Hours: 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Closed Monday. (818) 854-2354.

7. EARTHMOBILE * Los Angeles County Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles Third- through sixth-graders can become archeologists, digging in desert sand for planted “artifacts” in a make-believe Southwestern canyon. The canyon is inside a 48-foot air-conditioned truck called the “Earthmobile.” In a time when schools can rarely afford field trips, this traveling museum brings the great outdoors right onto the playground. In June, a marine biology truck will begin rolling to middle schools. Schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District can call (213) 744-3520 to make reservations.

8. THE MUSEUM OF JURASSIC TECHNOLOGY * 9341 Venice Blvd., Los Angeles Visitors expecting dinosaurs will instead be confronted with a quirky display devoted to the radar-equipped Deprong Mori bat, a horn that grew from a woman’s head, a diorama of a rain forest where crazed stink ants cling to vines and the incessant barking of a coyote head. The brainchild of former movie miniaturist David Wilson, this museum’s exhibits illuminate arcane subjects, among them notions that traditional science has laughed at, rejected or refused to acknowledge. Hours: 2 to 8 p.m. Thursdays, noon to 6 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Admission is $3 and $2 for senior citizens and students. Call (310) 836-6131