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Penn Museum in Philadelphia

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Penn Museum in Philadelphia
4.6
50
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3260 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States, Philadelphia

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Set in a building with a Chinese rotunda, this museum has abundant artifacts & antiquities.

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Penn Museum
AK
Adam K.
09.07.2022
4

We thought the museum was free since we saw a sign but when we got in they wanted to charge us $18 so we just looked at the koi pond and walk down the street and went sightseeing

Penn Museum
LC
Lesha Crews
08.28.2022
5

I enjoyed the exhibits, the presentation of history and artifacts are interesting. My first time seeing real mummies, absolutely amazing!

Penn Museum
MW
Melanie Weiss-Roper
08.27.2022
5

Always a new adventure! So much to see, plan to be there for a few hours or make multiple trips.

Penn Museum
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Baseema Baseema
08.21.2022
4

Took our two daughters here (5 and 3and although 95% of the museum wasn’t age appropriate for them, they adored the mummies, which was our main reason for going. They have about 4 human mummies and several animal mummies. My kids wanted to go back a second time to take another look and a photo lol. The ancient Mesopotamian and Babylonian art was the most interesting to me, but it’s a hard museum to take your time and discover if you have small children. So don’t bring the kids if you want to really appreciate this museum. I recommend the museum create a kid friendly section of the museum to captivate kids interest. Especially since kids tend to love ancient Egypt, it would be a great opportunity to get kids engaged and excited about ancient art and artifacts. You could spend a few good hours here if you take your time and look at everything. Our family did the museum in about an hour, and that was rushing it with the kids getting bored at some points. A nice gem of a museum, plus points because you can use your EBT card and get in for $2 a person!

Penn Museum
JS
J S
08.16.2022
4

I really enjoyed this museum. Though it was smaller than I expected, especially paying $18/ticket, I expected a bigger museum. But it did have an amazing ancient Egyptian collection (more so than anything else), and thats mainly what I came for, so I was happy. They also had an ancient Chinese exhibit and a small Mayan and Native American and African collection. Also their gift shop leaves something to be desired. My main issues were the price, even NYC doesnt charge that much and only ask for a donation of your choice. Plus their garage was expensive as well, cant remember how much because boyfriend paid, but it was close to about the same as the price of one ticket.I also didnt like that it said we had to buy timed tickets online, and we almost didnt go at the time we wanted to because we thought we missed our window and would have to wait, but when we got there, we thought wed just go in person and see, and lo and behold, there were almost no other people there and we were able to go in as soon as we came. This was a Friday afternoon so I cant speak for weekends.Also, a large portion of the Egyptian exhibit doesnt have air conditioning, just large fans, so it was pretty suffocating. Not sure what thats about. Bathrooms on the second floor were only two rooms for males and females and were disgusting and smelled horrible.Other than that, I do recommend the museum overall. Saw lots of amazing artifacts. Plus there is a climate controlled room you can enter where you can see where they work on their artifacts.

Penn Museum
mp
m p
08.14.2022
5

The museum itself has no flow to it because of all the floors and rooms. I hope we saw everything and didnt miss a whole room because of that. Very clean, nice, informative. Nice employees and security. Beautiful pond at the entrance and lovely building. Spent about 2-3 hours in total. Definitely worth stopping in and checking out of you like history.

Penn Museum
AP
Amanda Palmer
07.30.2022
5

Beautiful place, it sucks some of the exhibits were closed but Im probably gonna come back again. Make sure if you have EBT/SNAP to mention it at purchase, they will provide a discount.

Penn Museum
YC
Yvette C.
07.29.2022
3

The place is well put together. Some exhibits are in the process of being updated. I overall enjoyed my experience.

Penn Museum
MP
Mandy Pasion
07.29.2022
5

What a lovely museum. Super interesting, and lots of great things to look at!

Penn Museum
ES
Emily Selmer
07.26.2022
5

Beautiful museum. And free to enter with a UPenn ID! They also offer discounts for students with IDs from other universities. The architecture and landscaping of the building itself is lovely and the history inside was great to walk through and learn all about.

Penn Museum
DL
Daniel Lee
07.08.2022
5

Penn Museum is a must-visit for anyone interested in history, culture, or just learning more about the world we live in.The Penn Museum is an incredible collection of historical artifacts from around the world. Youll see everything from ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics to Native American artifacts from North America. 😶‍🌫️There are also pieces from countries such as China, Japan, and Greece—all of which have influenced modern society in some way or another.The staff was well disposed and gave us short briefs on unambiguous pieces for the day to provide us with a prosperous history of these trinkets.

Penn Museum
CA
Ciara-Rose Atkinson
07.05.2022
5

Favorite museum! Been there twice & cannot wait to go back! Full of world history that will intrigue you & then continue to keep you fascinated :)Makes me love history more & more!

Penn Museum
LS
Linda Starling
06.19.2022
4

I hadnt visited this museum in many years I went to see the exhibit, The Thing We Wear. I enjoyed the exhibit, wished that they would have had more items. This is a wonderful museum definitely worth a visit. 4 stars because I would have like to have seen more items displayed.

Penn Museum
AB
Angela Barry
06.11.2022
5

I have been taking my daughters here since they were littles. Its an amazing museum, ever hardly any wait to get in. There is an sometimes an archaeologists who you can speak with as they work on cleaning and preserving on items found.

Penn Museum
CE
Cathy E
06.08.2022
5

Beautiful and so user friendly since the renovations. Something of interest for everyone. Also, lovely grounds to enjoy.

Penn Museum
AK
Austin Kleyn
06.03.2022
5

Outstanding museum. The artifacts are arranged in a way so as to tell a story. There is great variety and the collection is highly interesting. One of my favorite museums of all time.

Penn Museum
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Sarah Schultz
05.26.2022
5

This was a great history museum. We did an added tour led by a Penn grad student, focused on food which was also cool.

Penn Museum
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Jaime An-Wong
05.22.2022
5

Came in with no expectations and was pleasantly surprised. Bigger than I thought it would be

Penn Museum
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Jinny Yang
05.10.2022
5

Loved the display. I learned so much today. Turkey wrap was good too. Staff was friendly and didnt rush you.

Penn Museum
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George Rizor
05.03.2022
5

If you are interested, the Penn Museum is absolutely fantastic - from the architecture of the museum itselfl, to the detailed and well-displayed artifacts. Plus, the dining, educational opportunities, and the assistance is wonderful. What a fantastic museum experience.

Penn Museum
Ryan
04.25.2022
5

Much to take in here at the Penn Museum. Probably not possible to hit everything in detail in one trip, but it is also not massive. Love the look and feel of the place as well!

Penn Museum
NP
Nils Paellmann
04.25.2022
5

Amazing museum with awesome collections. Great collection of Benin bronzes not overlooking their history with the brass from manillas (braceletsused for the slave trade melted down for the creation of many of the bronzes.

Penn Museum
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Francisco Roman Jimenez
04.17.2022
5

Lots off history artifacts from Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece, Italy, Mexico, & Native America.

Penn Museum
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Tiffany Joi
04.12.2022
5

Beautifully curated museum. The new exhibit with Native American and African artifacts was fascinating. I especially loved the displays of jewelry and Roman glass.

Penn Museum
Mzdoodles
04.11.2022
5

We had a great time. Id never been to this museum and I really enjoyed it. I especially loved the Egyptian and Asian exhibits. I really liked that the explanation of each item was so comprehensive and I learned a lot. I want to take my son back to see everything.

Penn Museum
ES
Eddie Ski
04.11.2022
5

Has very cool exhibits and security is on point & helpful

Penn Museum
AD
Ali Daniel
03.31.2022
5

Visiting the museum, was like a dream comes true! I really really enjoyed the visit and I loved the staff of the Museum! They are so kind and extremely generous. Thank you so much for the most joyful moments Ive ever had in my life! And actually, the day I visited the museum was my birthday day March 29, so I celebrated my birthday by visiting the museum.

Penn Museum
CM
Casey McClain
02.23.2022
5

An incredible collection of historical artifacts from around the world. The sphinx in the entrance alone is nearly worth the cost of entry to see such an amazing piece of history. Well curated collections broken down into geographic and historical date which makes it easy to follow history as it occurred. The special collection was The History We Wear and was an awesome look at several styles of clothing from periods and places around the world. Staff is friendly and short briefs on specific pieces occur throughout the day to give a rich history of these artifacts. Being able to see an original peice of the Gilgamesh epic in real life was amazing. Highly recommend this museum if you are fascinated by human history.

Penn Museum
AH
Abe H
12.30.2021
5

A hidden gem! A must stop when in Philly!One of the best university archeology museum in the world! The 1st floor has been completely renovated with lots of hands on and interactive exhibits.The renovation on the second floor is not complete yet, but should be soon.Has the largest Sphinx in the Western Hemisphere. 5th largest outside Egypt.Great place for family with kids. Teenagers will find this place interesting too!

Penn Museum
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Natallia A.
12.28.2021
5

Amazing Ivy League museum that has lots to learn about ancient ruins, Roman, Greek, Egyptian culture. Nice campus, good food to eat around, nice hotel options around too,one was on campus, some good shopping too

Penn Museum
NICO
12.09.2021
5

This museum was absolutely amazing. It was not crowded and you are allowed to get extremely close to the artifacts. I was shocked and filled with glee at the opportunity to see the craftsmanship of ancient people up close in such detail. If you’re an ancient Egypt fan then this is the place for you to visit!

Penn Museum
JC
Joseph Coleman
11.04.2021
5

Here to the Native American Indian culture being celebrated this month of (M)ovember. Using my Art Reach Access subscription card to the fullest.

Penn Museum
DL
David Le
09.18.2021
3

Its a pretty cool museum especially for a university, its got interesting and different exhibits, although not necessarily a large variety. For a museum its nice but during the time I was there there seemed to be a lot of construction at the time. So it was relatively small in comparison to other museums Ive been to.

Penn Museum
VS
Valerie Stephan
09.08.2021
4

Wonderful experience with interactive exhibits and offering great insight into anthropological discoveries past & present. It was amazing to see culture & relics from ancient Egypt, Greece, & closer to home wed previously only read about. Favorite exhibits were the Native American, Aztec, & Mayan interactive exhibits, and seeing incantation bowls from 400 CE that depicted illustrations that could have been from last week.

Penn Museum
AM
Ashley Morrison
09.07.2021
5

The Penn Museum have so many real life artifacts, mummies, and statues of famous ancient kings and queens. The Penn Museum show ancient Egypt, China, and Native American artifacts. It was very interesting to be there. So if you are a history buff like me, then I would recommend you or anyone you know to go there.

Penn Museum
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Tarot Palace (WWW.TAROTPALACE.COM)
09.03.2021
5

Jill and her team do a fabulous job of making a visit to Penn Museum an amazing experience. Be sure to save the entire day!! This museum is packed full of artifacts and information that will keep you fully engaged and entertained.A great place for learning more about culture and the unity that comes through diversified learning which the museum indirectly promotes by its vast display of the perspective and insight that can be gained from the art of life and living.Whether young or old, teacher or student, there is much to be gained from an in-person or virtual museum visit, enjoy a life changing view of our world around.

Penn Museum
Munther
07.27.2021
5

A must visit museum to all of those who loves Archeology. Hundreds of interesting artifacts: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Africa, America, Europe you name it. The Jewel of the crown for me was the UR Royal tombs

Penn Museum
DL
Dylan Loggains
07.03.2021
5

Great museum. Although smaller than the museum of art, the number of ancient artifacts is amazing. If you like that sort of thing you can spend a long time here. My wife and I spent right at 3 hours and didnt feel rushed.The layout was great and the information was well-presented.

Penn Museum
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Irfan Hussain
04.14.2021
4

Good collection and well planned museum. Need more marketing and events to highlight Museum.

Penn Museum
BR
Brooke R.
03.31.2021
5

I really enjoyed the museum and the grounds. There were great exhibits from Africa, China, the Middle East, and the Americas. This is great place to visit if you are interested in Egypt, Mummies and the Sphinx. Great use of multi-media in many of the exhibits (limited audio though). Not overwhelmingly big so it can definitely be done in a couple hours depending on your group. I visited during spring break with my 10 & 8 year old daughters and we had a great time. The architecture was amazing and there was even a koi pond with fish on the beautiful grounds for fun photos on a nice spring day.

Penn Museum
PS
Patricia Sicinski
02.28.2021
5

Beautiful Museum! The layout is simple to follow and not overwhelming. Their doing an excellent job with covid-19 protocols. The Egyptian artifacts were a personal favorite. If you get a chance to meet Tim, he is extremely knowledgeable and pleasant to chat with. Im looking forward to my next visit.

Penn Museum
CD
Christine DeVose-Cowans
09.01.2020
4

Great musuem with many artifacts and exhibits. My only issue was that parts of the museum was not air conditioned nor had much air flow and was very hot and a bit uncomfortable.Masks must be worn at all times due to Covid-19.

Penn Museum
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Raymond Ellis
02.01.2020
5

This is a great museum. I enjoyed all of the exhibits especially the new Sphinx Gallery, the Egyptian gallery and the Mesoamerican gallery. I was on a docent tour of the Mesoamerican gallery with a Mexican tour guide. His tour was interesting and informative. I went on another tour of the Egyptian gallery with the head curator which was also great. Im looking forward to new renovation that theyre working on of the Egyptian gallery which is opening in a few years.

Penn Museum
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Katherine R.
01.13.2020
5

I have come to this museum every year since I was a little girl! I absolutely love it! So much information to absorb and so many amazing artifacts to see! Definitely check this museum out if you are ever in the Philly area.

Penn Museum
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Ryan Lynn
04.06.2019
5

Really cool Museum with tons of artifacts from Egypt, Roman times, China. I was surprised how big it was, so big I missed an entire floor! The mummy section is a must see. I can’t believe how many mummies they have! This place rocks, and I got a ton of historical knowledge today!

Penn Museum
BP
Brad Payne
03.24.2019
5

I came here because it was listed in a book called “100 Things to do in Philadelphia Before you Die”. To say the least I was not disappointed. Probably outside of Cairo and Turin, Italy, they might have the best Egyptian artifacts, some 4,400 years old that are in amazing condition. Sometimes I don’t like it when we take ancient materials from other countries but they are doing an unbelievable job of maintaining the condition of these items with state of the art environmental equipment.Another highlight is they have 20-30 ancient Chinese items from various dynasties. The highlight were the Fu Lions and the various Buddha statues.I highly recommend visiting the Penn Museum, especially if you like mummies, and it is only $15 for adults.

Penn Museum
AB
Andrew Bowers
01.20.2019
1

Collection from around the world largely acquired during colonialist times that should be returned or displayed for free for impoverished Philly residents. Much like the antiquities of the British Museum much of the collection was taken from countries and native peoples during times of their oppression. Although the museum is beautiful and the pieces are well maintained and cared for, they should be returned. However, if the exhibits were made free to Philadelphias poor communities of color then perhaps an education mission could be justified instead of using the proceeds to line Penns already overflowing (and under taxedpockets.

Penn Museum
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Mike Monroe
12.05.2018
5

AGI held their company holiday party at Penn Museum. We enjoyed a few cocktails while walking among the many displays and mummies. We than had a delicious buffet dinner and even went back for seconds. Dessert and coffee did us in and we were ready to mingle a little more with friends and co-workers before calling it a night. Definitely looking forward to another visit after 2019 when all the renovations and improvements are complete.

Penn Museum
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Ernie P.
10.11.2018
5

Nice compact museum with a collection specializing in ancient civilizations especially Middle East. Love the open window for the artifacts restoration lab, bit only open a few hours a day where you can talk and ask questions with one of the restoration specialists. The atrium domed room is awesome! A beautiful space with nice Asian artifacts.There were a number of exhibits closed for a while to renovate, update, and protect artifacts from the hospital wing construction next door. You can hear and feel a bit of the construction work.The original museum was constructed in1899 and recently majorly renovated, but navigation if you have some mobility issues can be challenging with the second floor center blocked which made accessibility to elevator having you go out to the group entrance, but its doable. As the helpful staff.While nice, might want to wait for renovations to get done for a even better museum. First choice should be the Philadelphia Museum of Art and if you have time this is a nice place.

Penn Museum
MW
Mark Wlaz
08.02.2018
5

It has been a long time since I visited the Penn Museum - I wish I had come back sooner. The setting is bright and clean, and the displays are well documented and very informative. The items are first class - one of the top notch archaeological collections in the U.S.Plus, we were fortunate to come across the ArtifactLab during one of the two times each day when a conservator talks about the restoration work she or he is currently performing. On our day, we observed an Egyptian mummy being conserved, and were able to ask all kind of questions.The museum also has a nice cafe to grab a bite to eat or something to drink.

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4.6
50
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Penn Museum in Philadelphia

3260 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States, Philadelphia

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