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The Art Museum is betting a masterpiece on an Eagles win in the Super Bowl

The PMA and Kansas City's Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art are betting on the Super Bowl over art works. We know where we're putting our money.

In foreground is #55 Brandon Graham and in background #2 Darius Slay. Giant cutouts of Philadelphia Eagles football players on steps of Philadelphia Museum of Art as seen on Wednesday, January 18, 2023.
In foreground is #55 Brandon Graham and in background #2 Darius Slay. Giant cutouts of Philadelphia Eagles football players on steps of Philadelphia Museum of Art as seen on Wednesday, January 18, 2023.Read moreAlejandro A. Alvarez / Staff Photographer

You already knew a lot was riding on this Super Bowl.

But, hey, this is Philly. Even the museums here have skin in the game.

The Battle of the Titans just became The Meeting of the Masterpieces with the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Kansas City’s Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art entering a curious bet.

Art Museum director and CEO Sasha Suda will lend one of the Philadelphia museum’s master paintings to Nelson-Atkins, just in case the Eagles don’t rise victorious over the Kansas City Chiefs.

Julian Zugazagoitia, director and CEO of Kansas City’s Nelson-Atkins, has met that challenge for his city’s Chiefs, with the promise of lending a painting from one of its collections in the event of a Birds win.

Of course, each side is expecting the other to come bearing the goods.

“When the Eagles soar to victory, we will warmly greet our friends from the Nelson-Atkins and treat them to unforgettable cheesesteaks here in Philadelphia,” Suda said. “They have such a remarkable collection, and we will be thrilled to share a piece of it with our visitors, in a very special Point After Touchdown. We’ll make it feel right at home in our galleries and display it with Philly pride.”

The BBQ Capital of the World, meanwhile, is counting on stoking the coals for the Philly delegation.

“We expect to offer our Philadelphia friends something they’ll long remember after the Chiefs make short work of the Eagles,” said Zugazagoitia. “Philadelphia’s museum has so many amazing works, and they will see how wonderful the PMA loan will appear in our beautiful galleries. We won’t let them leave, of course, before they can taste the best of Kansas City barbecue.”

So far, neither side is letting on what the potential spoils of victory might be. Officials with the Philadelphia museum say curators on both sides will have to huddle to determine the rules of that play.

When they do, art watchers will be able to find what painting will be destined for a vacation via Instagram. Make sure to keep an eye on at #MuseumBowl23, as well as the museums’ individual Facebook pages.

In the meantime, the Nelson-Atkins catalog awaits Philly’s perusal.