Document and Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2013	May 03, 2013
Document Documentand Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2013
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	PVA
Entity Registrant Name	PENN VIRGINIA CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000077159
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		65,222,907