Penn Museum gains popularity — as a wedding venue

The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology has begun to make some history of its own by playing host to the most special day in the lives of numerous couples: their wedding day.

The Penn Museum’s growing popularity as a wedding venue stems from the fact that it provides a setting that’s different from your run-of-the-mill banquet hall. It allows couples to choose between a practical wedding and an elaborate one.

The practical wedding plan, also known as the “Simple and Sweet” package, involves a ceremony that can be as short as five minutes and can take place during the day. The more elaborate alternative is a conventional, catered affair with audio-visual provisions and extensive decor.

Director of Facility Rentals at the Penn Museum Atiya German has worked at the Museum for over five years and said weddings had been taking place there well before she was hired but have become increasingly common. She noted a recent burst in the venue’s popularity with the Museum playing host to about 12 weddings per year in recent years.

“Banquet halls and hotels are losing their popularity. People want their wedding pictures to be different from other people’s and for their guests to have a more unique experience,” she said.

She said their largest client base consists of Penn alumni and their relatives, though the venue has been gaining traction with couples not affiliated with Penn.

“It means much more to get married at your alma mater,” she said.

One couple that decided to tie the knot in September last year, amid the “historic” setting of the Penn Museum, was Rasheda and Alexander Weaver.

While they opted for the more elaborate wedding choice, Rasheda said that they wanted a more intimate wedding and only invited around 100 guests, about a third of Penn Museum’s capacity.

“Upon entering the Museum and seeing the Chinese Rotunda, I just knew that it would be a grand, elegant and unique event. I just had to have my wedding [there],” she said. “If I could do it, I would make it longer just because it was such a great experience. It was the most magical day of my life.”

Although she was charmed by the museum, she said practical considerations also came into play. Working with their event planner along with the preferred vendors made organizing seamless, and on the day of the wedding everything went smoothly.

She said the historic nature of the museum added to the venue’s allure.

“The Museum represents history. Our weddings become a part of history by creating a legacy between two families,” she said.

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