The Penn Museum is a center for inquiry, where scholars, students, and visitors come together to investigate our common human experience. Our community stretches from Penn’s campus to research sites around the world, collaborating across borders to excavate, preserve, and share the world’s cultural heritage.
As a research museum with a more than 130-year tradition of field research, we are a global leader in cutting-edge archaeological techniques, a training ground for scholars and curators, and a space for conversations about how human history relates to the most pressing issues facing our contemporary world.
Under the leadership of Williams Director Christopher Woods, we are deepening the Museum’s commitment to ethical stewardship. By co-creating exhibitions and programs with communities who have legacy connections to the million unique objects in our care, we can tell deeper, more inclusive stories about our shared humanity, expanding our impact through transparency, empathy, and mutual understanding.
Jonathan Heisler
Assistant Director, Individual Gifts
heislerj@upenn.edu
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Experience the Penn Museum from anywhere around the world! Curate your own favorites from our online collections, attend live virtual programs from your living room, or explore our resources—for kids, families, and adults—that expand the possibilities for creativity, learning, and fun.
Highlighted Priorities
- Supporting research as we continue our over 130-year tradition of uncovering untold aspects of the human story around the globe, using cutting-edge archaeological techniques and working hand-in-hand with local communities to preserve and share their cultural heritage.
- Encouraging inquiry in students of all ages, from K-12 programs like our flagship Philadelphia School District partnership Unpacking the Past to our Academic Engagement Program for Penn undergraduates.
- Caring for collections through conservation, curation, and renovation of our gallery spaces—including the transformation of our popular Ancient Egypt and Nubia Galleries into a monumental living classroom, in which storage, classroom, and exhibition spaces form one of the world’s foremost centers for the study of these great kingdoms.
“A gift to the Penn Museum supports a community dedicated to a deeper understanding of our shared humanity and a center for inquiry where everyone—regardless of background—can find a connection to the common human story.”
- Christopher Woods
Williams Director and Avalon Professor in the Humanities