Years ago, pre-covid, we visited Italy. While there with a bit of time to kill we stumbled upon a Leonardo Di Vinci museum. Hubby greatly enjoyed it. Wifey ... not so much. Regardless, it was essentially a mecca of engineering and innovation and included display after painfully detailed display regarding Di Vinci's attempts to create a perpetual motion machine.
While researching things to do and see in Philadelphia ... afterall we knew we couldn't eat Philly Cheesesteaks ALL day every day; Wifey came across the Benjamin Franklin museum that looked similar to that of Leonardo Di Vinci and knew we had to fit it into our visit.
We ended up walking literally around an extra block to find the entrance to the museum which is co-located with the site of Benjamin Franklin's house ruins. Per the sign, we followed the cobblestone until we reached the entrance.
The Benjamin Franklin museum is part of the NPS Liberty Park area but does include a fee to visit of $5 per person. Your America The Beautiful Pass will not get you in. $10 later we (mostly Wifey) made a quick bathroom stop and began our exploration of the museum. The museum is divided into 5 character traits displayed by Franklin, specifically: ardent and dutiful, ambitious and rebellious, motivated to improve, curious and full of wonder, and strategic and persuasive.
Full of interactive exhibits (many with motion sensors that seem to automatically interact with the visitor as you approach) the museum did not disappoint. Wifey liked it better than the Di Vinci museum, and Hubby a bit less, but was still pleased.
Did you know Benjamin Franklin invented his own musical instrument!? It is called the armonica or glass harmonica and is made of a series of glass bowls that you rub to create tones.
He also invented several vocabulary words! WHATT! Can you imagine that before the mid 1700's none of the below words existed?
Franklin enjoyed a type of early Sudoku where numbers were entered to each add up to 15 in all directions. See below the interactive opportunity to try your skills at this game. Wifey successfully reset the game to not add up to 15 in preparation for Hubby's arrival at the display. He solved the puzzle and seemed to enjoy the challenge.
Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals! You can even see him wearing this invention in some of his later official portraits.
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