Antalya Museum
(Antalya Müzesi)
 The Antalya Museum or Antalya
Archeological Museum (Turkish: Antalya Müzesi) is one of Turkey's
largest museums, located in Konya Altı, Antalya. It includes 13
exhibition halls and an open air gallery. It covers an area of 7,000
m² and has 5000 works of art are exhibited. Additional 25 - 30,000
artifacts which those cannot be displayed are kept in a storage hall
[1]. As a museum exhibiting examples of works, which illuminate the
history of the Mediterranean and Pamphylia (Antalya) regions in
Anatolia, Antalya Museum is considered to be one of the most
important of Turkey's museums. The Antalya Archaeology Museum won
the “European Council Special Prize” in 1988.
History of the
Archaeology Museum of Antalya
At the end of the First World War, during the time when Antalya was
under the Italian military occupation, Italian archaeologists started
to remove the archeological treasures that had been found in the the
center or the surroundings to the Italian Embassy, which they
claimed to do in the name of civilization. To prevent these
initiatives, Süleyman Fikri Bey, the Sultan's teacher, applied to
the Antalya post and jurisdiction of the provinial Governor in 1919
and had himself appointed as voluntary officer of antiquities and
first tried to establish the Antalya Museum by collecting what
remained in the center. The museum at first operated in the Alâeddin
Mosque in 1922, then in Yivli Minare Mosque beginning from 1937, and
then moved to its present building in 1972. It was closed to
visitors for a wide range of modifications and restorations in 1982.
It was reorganized according to a modern approach for a museum and
opened to the public in April 1985, after the restorations and
display arrangements made by the General Directorate of Ancient
Objects and Museums. Top
 
Antalya Regional Museum consists of 13 exhibition rooms, 1 open-air
exhibition area, laboratories, a storeroom, repair shops, a
photographic room, a conference hall, administrative offices, a
cafeteria and living quarters for museum officials. The exhibition
rooms are as follows. Top
  
Shows living creatures from man down to one celled animals, charts
and pictures, fossils and bones. Top
Here are exhibited works found in Karain, Okuzini and Sehahoyuk.
Karain is a cave, which has been the scene of a continuous series of
civilizations. The works range from those of the Paleolithic to
those of the Roman Age. Works include animal fossils and kitchen
utensils. Top
Here are exhibited works from the Neolithic, Calcolithic, and Early
Bronze Age found in Hacilar. Excavations at Semahoyuk and its
surroundings found most of the works. Top
  
Here there are works dating from the Mycenaean Age to the
Hellenistic Age, including earthenware figurines, wine bowls, and
dishes. In one of the Hellenistic showcases is an important
statuette of Apollo. Besides these are statuary works from the Roman
period, which make up the largest section of the museum.
Top
 
In this room are exhibited statues of mythological figures dating
from the 2-3 centuries AD, Roman period. They were found in
excavations at Perge. Top
 
Here are exhibited lamps and glass objects dating from the Roman and
Byzantine periods, a gold inlay silver tray found by treasure
hunters at Kumluca, incense holders and lamps (6th Century AD). To
the front of the room are lintel figures from a tomb found opposite
Lymira. Top
  
Here are exhibited statues portraying emperors, empresses and other
personages from the Roman period. They were found in excavations at
Perge. In the center of the room is a large statue of Plankia Magna,
a great administrator who contributed much towards the development
of Perge during that city's golden period. There are also statues of
the Emperor Hadrian, and the Emperor Septimus Severius and his wife.
Top
  
Sarcophagi from the Roman period from Pamphilia and Sidemara are
displayed here. The most beautiful of these are the Domitias
sarcophagus, and the one showing the twelve labors of Hercules.
Top
Here are exhibited Byzantine period mosaics found in excavations at
Ksantos, and icons, from the region around Antalya. Top
Examples of gold, electron, silver, and copper coins from the
Hellenistic to Ottoman periods are displayed in here. The most
interesting of these are the city and imperial coins.
Top
This room contains examples of Seljuk and Ottoman tiles, Anatolian
carpets from the Ottoman period, inscriptions, books, candlesticks
etc. Top
Here are exhibited clothes, embroidery, weapons, and metal objects
from the region of Antalya. One corner of the room has been
furnished as a typical Anatolian house. Top
A
hall in the entrance of the museum was organized as a Children's
Museum, which is the first of its kind in Turkey. In the display
windows of this section, there are various children's toys and
antique moneyboxes. Simple restorations, and educational activity
opportunities for ceramic sculpture and drawing are provided and
their works are presented in the studio section, in order to make
the children enjoy museums, antique objects and to awaken their
interest. Top
-
Antalya Museum of Archaeology, Museum's official website
-
Wikipedia, Archaeological Museum of Antalya
Top
-
TransAnatolie Tour
- A - Group
License N°4938 - The Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism
-
|
