General Information
The mission of the Reading Public Museum, a dynamic center of lifelong learning and discovery, is to educate, enlighten and engage current and future generations through the collection, preservation and interpretation of objects of art, science and civilization.
The last admission for the public will be a half hour before closing.
We have group tours available if you have 15 people or more. Reservations required. Call 610-371-5850 ext. 227 to schedule tours.
Free parking is available on the Museum property. During special events, please observe signs for extra parking. The Museum is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
The Museum is closed every Monday.
Please note: In order to provide a better, safer environment for our art collection storage, we have temporarily closed certain Galleries during renovations. The area affected is: 20th Century Gallery (2nd Floor).
ADA Accessible.
The Museum Shop is open during Museum hours. No admission fee for browsing. Visa, MasterCard and Discover accepted.
Please note, paintings, objects and artists represented on the Web site may not be on view at all times.
Weddings
At this time, there are no weddings or wedding receptions permitted IN the Museum. If you would like to have your wedding ceremony or your wedding photos taken on the Museum grounds, please call 610-371-5850 x230. A location for a ceremony must be reserved with the Museum; there are no walk-on ceremonies permitted. Additionally, we do not allow wedding receptions and/or ceremony set-ups on the Museum grounds.
If you do schedule a ceremony on Museum grounds, we encourage you to make a contribution of $200. As a non-profit organization, this contribution helps offset our many costs and ensures that our grounds remain a beautiful place. Please make your check payable to the "Reading Public Museum” and a receipt will be sent to you for tax purposes.
Note: We do keep a master calendar of all wedding ceremonies scheduled on the grounds. However, the Arboretum is a public space. We cannot guarantee exclusivity to a particular location.
For complete reservation information including an application form, click here (PDF).
Apprasials & Conservation
The Museum cannot offer valuations, appraisals, or authentications of artwork. If you have an object you would like to have valued or authenticated, the Museum recommends the following resources, and/or click here for a full list:
• American Society of Appraisers (800) 272-8258
www.appraisers.org
• Appraisers Association of America (212) 889-5404
www.appraiserassoc.org
• Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America
www.abaa.org
For questions about object conservation, the American Institute for Conservation has available a national referral system. Please call (202) 452-9545.
Useful link: http://aic.stanford.edu/
Financial Information
To download a copy of our 2009 Form 990 Tax Form (Return of Organization Exempt Form Income Tax), click here.
To download a copy of our latest (2009) Audited Financial Report, click here.
Exhibits and events are supported in part by grants from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
