March 12, 2026
Kristin Hunt/for PhillyVoice
A giant eyeball watches visitors entering the Ministry of Awe, the new museum at 27 N. 3rd St.
The Old City building that used to house Manufacturer's National Bank has transformed into one of Philadelphia's kookiest museums — and it's got the giant eyeball to prove it.
The Ministry of Awe is slated to open Saturday after a complete reworking of the historic property. All six stories of the immersive art space, located at 27 N. 3rd St., are crawling with pieces from over 100 painters, sculptors, mosaicists, animators and video artists based in the city. And while the museum is miles away from a 19th century bank, bits of its past identity remain through the antique vault that greets visitors in the lobby and whimsical teller stations.
Visitors can open the vault by placing their hands on the pad above.
"It's a bank with no money," founder and artist Meg Saligman said at a press preview Wednesday. "It's also a bank inside a historic bank. We protect humanity within this establishment. Our currency is the human spirit."
Even the staircases and landings of the Ministry of Awe contain art, like this sculpture of a man seemingly stepping on himself.
Designed by Philadelphia architect Frank Furness, the Gothic Revival building contains all sorts of oddities. Some have small green hand symbols stamped on their pedestals, indicating they can be touched, while others bear red eyes. Those should be observed only. The interactive displays range from a forgery and counterfeiting station on the third floor — where people can ape famous signatures like John Hancock's and then scan them for assessment — to the bathrooms in the basement, which thank visitors for their "deposits" upon flushing. Performers also pop up, querying visitors or simply adding to the ambiance.
Murals cover the ceiling of the 'Heavens' on the fourth floor. Projectors that respond to touch and sound alter their appearance.
"If you've been to a museum, a theater, a haunted house, a dream maybe, we are not quite any of those things," Saligman said. "And then if you're wondering what is a proper way to experience the Ministry of Awe, there's good news. There isn't one. You are free to wander and we value your choice."
A chaotic sculpture spirals out over a staircase inside the Ministry of Awe.
The Ministry of Awe can feel a bit like a retro Otherworld or Meow Wolf, right down to the mythology. The staff has created characters that appear throughout the building, including a "chicken lady" and the enigmatic Mr. P. Balance, a fairy who ate a coin and now lives in the walls. Searching for Mr. P. is a ready-made scavenger hunt; he's painted into corners and appears in a video looping in the lobby. A side table is even stuffed with letters addressed to him.
The Ministry of Awe created a character named Mr. P, described as a 'mischievous shape shifter.' He's hidden throughout the museum.
Philadelphians can see the spectacle for themselves starting this weekend. The Ministry of Awe will be open Tuesdays through Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Fridays from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. It is closed on Mondays. General admission is $29 per person.
The 'jewelry box' room is upholstered to resemble the real thing.
Though the museum does not offer traditional spaces for temporary or traveling exhibits, Saligman describes it as an "ever-evolving world" that will be updated over time.
Visitors climb into a crashed spaceship in the 'Redacted' room on the top floor.
"It changes, it grows new rooms in the night," Saligman said of the museum. "It occasionally misbehaves. We consider that a feature, not a bug, of the Ministry of Awe. I would say the misbehavior is something we value here."
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