Philly Landmarks to Close for Pope’s Visit

As the weeks go by, plans are really shaping up for Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia in September. This past week saw the official release of the pontiff’s itinerary for his two days in the city, which includes attending the World Festival of Families, visiting the inmates of a prison, and saying mass twice (once for a private, ticketed event and once for the public in a celebration expected to draw upwards of a million people). It was also announced this week that Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and Latin American pop star Juanes will be performing for the pope at the Festival of Families.

The PMA will be closed during the pope’s visit.

More information coming out lately suggests that the papal visit will disrupt business as usual at some major Philadelphia landmarks. Both the Museum of Art and the Barnes Foundation announced that they will be closing for the weekend of the pope’s visit, September 26 – 27, due to security concerns. In fact, the secret service in charge of the pope’s wellbeing required them to close.

In exchange, the Barnes Foundation is working on offering extended hours during the weeks before and after the pope’s visit, so that people in town for the event have the chance to come and enjoy the experience. The Museum of Art will also open for extended evening hours both before and after the visit.

The Franklin Museum, which is coincidentally offering a “Vatican Splendors” exhibit showcasing some of the world’s most beautiful holy art, is still working out the details of whether it will remain open during the visit, and for what hours. It’s expected that more details will be made available as time goes on.