The Rocky Statue and The Rocky Steps
The Rocky Statue and the “Rocky Steps” are undeniably two of the most popular attractions in Philadelphia.
A near constant flow of people arrive daily to snap a picture with the Rocky statue at the bottom of the stairs at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and then hustle up the museum’s grand stairway to try their hand at the famous two-arms-raised salute.
Originally created for a scene in Rocky III, the sculpture is a real-life monument to a celluloid hero who endures as a favorite fictional son of the City of Brotherly Love.
Visiting the statue, running up the steps and taking a picture at the top, arms-raised in victory is a must on any first visit to Philadelphia. Consider it a rite of passage.
Visiting the statue, running up the steps and taking a picture at the top is a must on any first visit to Philly.
The Rocky Statue — a larger-than-life boxer — is one of Philadelphia’s most famous pieces of public art.
The fictional Rocky Balboa of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky movies was immortalized in bronze by artist A. Thomas Schomberg in 1980 for a scene in the film Rocky III.
After the filming was complete, Stallone donated the statue to the City of Philadelphia.
Since 2006, the statue has been located at the bottom of the stairs at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and there is a near constant stream of people waiting in line to get their pictures taken with the “Italian Stallion.”
As famous as the statue are the steps leading to the east entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, aka “The Rocky Steps.” In fact, they’ve been declared the second most famous movie filming location in the world.
Each year, tens of thousands of people recreate the scene from the legendary movie and make the trek up the steps.
Just be prepared to work for it — those 72 steps don’t climb themselves.
Want to follow in Rocky’s actual footsteps? Check out our Rocky Tour of Philadelphia for a self-guided trek to city attractions and locations seen in the Rocky films.
Recreate the boxer’s famous run up the Art Museum steps; grab an authentic cheesesteak at Pat’s, the very place where he stopped in the original Rocky; walk through the Italian Market and then stop by an old-school butcher shop, where (sorry) they’re probably not going to let visitors go to the back in order to use the hanging meat as a punching bag.
Once the jog up the steps and photo are complete, visitors should keep going to hit the east entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the third-largest art museum in the country.
Among its impressive holdings in Renaissance, American, Impressionist and Modern art, standouts include a great Rogier van der Weyden altarpiece, a large Bathers by Cezanne, a room devoted to Philadelphia’s own Thomas Eakins, and Marcel Duchamp’s notorious mixed-media Bride Stripped Bare by her Bachelors (The Large Glass), exactly as the dada master originally installed it.
Bonus: On the first Sunday of the month and every Wednesday after 5 p.m., admission to the Philadelphia Museum of Art is pay-what-you-wish.
On the first Sunday of the month and every Wednesday after 5 p.m., admission to the Philadelphia Museum of Art is pay-what-you-wish. — Photo by Visit Philadelphia
Snapping a photo with the Rocky Statue and running up the Rocky Steps is free.
Click here to get directions to the Rocky Statue on Google Maps.
A ticket to the Philadelphia Museum of Art grants two-consecutive days admission to the museum along with admission to the Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building, the Rodin Museum and historic houses Cedar Grove and Mount Pleasant.
Snap a photo with the Rocky Statue, then run up the Rocky Steps. — Photo by J. Fusco for Visit Philadelphia
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One of the largest art museums in the country and a must-see attraction...