Myocardial ischemia is one of the most extensively studied topics in modern cardiovascular research. Early investigators first reported experimental myocardial ischemia (EMI) in 1862. The open-chest (surgical) approach is a well-developed model of EMI that enables researchers to directly access and observe the heart. With this approach, EMI is generally induced by surgical ligation of a coronary artery. A drawback of the open-chest model is the need for major surgery, which can result in local and systemic side effects. Alternative closed-chest models of EMI have been developed; most of these models involve endovascular catheterization with coronary artery embolization or thrombosis. Closed-chest techniques eliminate the need for invasive surgery, and the resultant model is more physiologically similar to clinical myocardial ischemia than is EMI produced by artery ligation. The authors present a review of open- and closed-chest models of EMI and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each approach.