Museums in Art Museum (Philadelphia)

Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Philadelphia Museum of Art features over 200 galleries filled with treasures spanning continents and cultures, drawn from a collection of more than 400,000 works of art. The huge stone edifice of the museum, supported by majestic Doric columns, looks over the Schuylkill River. Scale the steps made famous in the 'Rocky' movies. Dine at the Museum Restaurant or walk in Fairmount Park, just behind the museum.

Rodin Museum

Few artistic geniuses have captured the human form and condition in sculpture like Auguste Rodin. Marvel at perhaps his most famous work, The Thinker, and wonder at the introspective nature of man and the might that is thought and creation. The Kiss and other noteworthy sculptures are also on hand including his last work, Gates of Hell. Apart from the French Rodin Musee, the Philadelphia locale is considered the largest collection of his masterpieces.

Eastern State Penitentiary

This penitentiary was an 18th Century social experiment along Quaker principles. It went horribly wrong. Complete solitary confinement was the rule, on the theory inmates would use the time for prayer, reflection, and penitence. In fact, the loneliness destroyed many, and eventually overcrowding led to squalid conditions with no pretense of reform. It finally closed in the 1970s. The degree of infamy Eastern State Penitentiary experienced when in use made Alcatraz seem like a day care center. Inmates formerly incarcerated here include arch criminal Al Capone and bank robber Willie Horton. Although it stands today in crumbling condition, visitors get an eerie feel when viewing the vaulted cell blocks and central rotunda. Daily tours are offered. Just five blocks from the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Stephen Girard Collection

Stephen Girard led a fascinating life and left a unique legacy when he died. His will allocated millions of dollars to fund a boarding school for the poor and underprivileged. For over 150 years, Girard College has provided education to children from low-income families. Founders Hall of Girard College features a collection of personal effects from Stephen Girard's several homes. Items on display include furniture, silver, glassware, china and artwork. A life-size statue of Girard stands in front of a sarcophagus bearing his remains. Free admission.

Please Touch Museum

Please Touch Museum is the country's first museum designed for children ages seven and younger. Please Touch is home to nine interactive exhibits including Barnyard Babies, Move It! and The Supermarket. Families can also take part in special gallery activities and catch a Please Touch Playhouse theater production.

Academy of Natural Sciences

The Academy of Natural Sciences boasts one of the most extensive collections of dinosaur remains and fossils in the country. Visitors can view the 40-foot frame of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, the vanquished rulers of the Earth. In addition to the permanent displays, the academy often puts emphasis on ecological exhibits and their relevance to today's environment. It is conveniently located close to the Franklin Institute and other museums, as well as shopping and eating destinations.

Moore College of Art & Design

The Goldie Paley Gallery at Moore College here exhibit student and faculty work, plus curated shows of textile and fine art influences. Moore's founder, Sarah Worthington Peter, saw the profound social and economic implications of the Industrial Revolution and realized the enormous potential for women in the work place. Peter felt that women should be trained to meet the highest standards of production in textiles, wallpapers, floor coverings, upholstery materials, lithography, bookmaking and illustration, and wood engraving. Today, women in ten professional and fine arts programs at Moore College continue to forge a unique niche in the design industry.

Benjamin Franklin National Memorial

Benjamin Franklin's legacy is unique because he is remembered as a scientist, inventor, philosopher, statesman, printer, economist and musician—and he did all of these things in a remarkable way. This marble statue stands 20 feet high in Memorial Hall, a rotunda modeled after the Pantheon in Rome. The statue weighs 30 tons and sits on a stepped pedestal carved from 92 tons of marble. Many of Franklin's personal possessions are also displayed in Memorial Hall, a part of the Franklin Institute Science Museum. Admission is free.

Franklin Institute

Families can start a day of museum hopping with a trip to the Franklin Institute, located within walking distance from the Academy of Natural Sciences, Rodin Museum and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. One of America's best science museums, The Franklin Institute is filled with hundreds of hands-on exhibits, live demonstrations, high-tech theaters and special programs designed to open the world of science. Walk through a heart, age yourself with a special computer, get lost in the 360° screen of an Omnimax film or explore the stars in the Fels Planetarium.