Rocky statue relocated from the base of the Art Museum steps

March 25, 2026 Updated Wed., March 25, 2026 at 3:14 p.m.

The Rocky statue is removed from the bottom of the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps Wednesday morning March 25, 2026, to be transported inside the museum to be included in an upcoming exhibition. (Tom Gralish/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS)

By Nick Vadala Philadelphia Inquirer

PHILADELPHIA – After two decades at the base of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s iconic steps, the city’s famed Rocky statue came down from his pedestal just before noon Wednesday.

The next time we see him, he will be inside the museum – a first for the statue, which has called Philly home for more than 40 years.

Wednesday’s move saw Rocky placed inside the building for its inclusion in a forthcoming exhibition known as “Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments.” Opening April 25, that exhibition will run through August, after which the statue will be installed at the top of the Art Museum’s steps.

A statue of real-life boxing champ “Smokin’” Joe Frazier, now located at the South Philadelphia sports complex, will take over Rocky’s former home at the base of the steps.

The statue moves were proposed by city arts office Creative Philadelphia. Having both Frazier and Rocky represented at the museum, department officials have said, serves as a way to “create a respectful dialogue between two complementary representations of Philadelphia’s spirit.”