Palace of Fine Arts

On land originally belonging to the Presidio, the Palace of Fine Arts was built in 1915 for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Today the site, which belongs to the City of San Francisco, features a classical Roman rotunda with curved colonnades in an idyllic park setting. Housed within the walls of the City of San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts, the Exploratorium is a park partner and a world-renowned museum and educational center with 650 science, art, and human perception exhibits. Founded in 1969 by Dr. Frank Oppenheimer, the Exploratorium's mission is "to create a culture of learning through innovative environments, programs, and tools that help people nurture their curiosity about the world around them."