The superb Museum of Anatolian Civilisations is the perfect introduction to the complex weave of Turkey’s ancient past, housing artefacts cherry-picked from just about every significant archaeological site in Anatolia.
The museum is housed in a beautifully restored 15th-century bedesten (covered market). The 10-domed central marketplace houses reliefs and statues, while the surrounding hall displays exhibits from the earlier Anatolian civilisations: Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age, Assyrian, Hittite, Phrygian, Urartian and Lydian. The downstairs sections hold classical Greek and Roman artefacts and a display on Ankara’s history. Get there early to avoid the flood of tour groups and school parties.
The exhibits are chronologically arranged in a spiral: start at the Palaeolithic and Neolithic displays in the room to the right of the entrance, then continue in an anticlockwise direction, visiting the central room last.
Items from one of the most important Neolithic sites in the world Çatalhöyük, southeast of Konya – are displayed here. There’s a mock-up of the inside of a dwelling typical of those uncovered at the site, one of the most famous mother goddess sculptures unearthed from the excavations and wall paintings of hunting scenes.
Also on show are many finds from the Assyrian trading colony Kültepe, one of the world’s oldest and wealthiest bazaars. These include baked-clay tablets found at the site, which dates to the beginning of the 2nd millenium BC.
One of the striking Hittite figures of bulls and stags in the next room used to be the emblem of Ankara. The Hittites were known for their relief work, and some mighty slabs representing the best pieces found in the country, generally from around Hattuşa, are on display in the museum’s central room.
Most of the finds from the Phrygian capital Gordion, including incredible inlaid wooden furniture, are on display in the museum’s last rooms. The exhibits also include limestone blocks with still-indecipherable inscriptions resembling the Greek alphabet, and lion- and ram-head ritual vessels that show the high quality of Phrygian metalwork.
Urartian artifacts are also on display here. Spurred by rich metal deposits, the Urartians were Anatolia’s foremost metalworkers, as the knives, horse-bit, votive plates and shields on display demonstrate. There are also terracotta figures of gods in human form, some revealing their divine powers by growing scorpion tails, and neo-Hittite artefacts.
Downstairs, classical-period finds and regional history displays provide a local picture. Excavations have unearthed a Roman road near the Column of Julian, and Ankara has its own ‘missing link’, the 9.8-million-year-old Ankarapithecus (a 30kg, fruit-eating primate).
The museum was undergoing a renovation when we were there and part of it was sealed off. However, they had done a marvelous job of recreating the space with plenty of ancient treasures to see. We were lucky as they had a nice display of the actual gold from Troy…we had just toured Troy so it was grand to see…
This is a wonderful museum. The museum provided a fine description of the early Anatolian civilizations. The displays extend back in time to before the Hittites and had detailed descriptions in several languages including english. Small items were behind glass while large stone carved objects, some thousands of years old, were plentiful and displayed throughout the museum. Some of the…
Very interesting, and unusual for me, a wonderful gift shop.
Really well explained and worth a visit
If you have any interest in Hittite culture you will want to stop at this gem in Ankara. The pieces are each amazing in detail and in scope.
Could have spent another hour here easily. Take your time and enjoy the large collection. 1/3 of it was closed for renovation during my visit-can't imagine what they'll have when it reopens!
A little bit sways from the restaurant/retail shopping areas of the city, the museum holds an incredible amount of history and artifacts from the area. Unfortunately, the placards describing the ruins are unclear and when we went, the entire bottom floor was blocked off.
The most annoying, the sales assistant at the gift shop followed us in the small one…
Been there for the first time and must say it was an impressive visit .
Very well presented, good collections of different civilizations – well presented and explained.
Part of the museum is closed due to renovation therefore 15 TL entrance fee might seem a bit much. I kind of felt the same however I spent at least 2 hours…
The collection is very rich, ranging from prehistory to more recent centuries. It has artifacts, old monuments, statues and educational assemblies about the long history of the region´s settlement and the development of these civilizations. Very very interesting! Worth it!
This museum is built within a caravanserai and is showing its age. Half of the building is closed for rennovation and the remainder has a quite cluttered feel as a result. There may also be more exhibits in storage until the rennovations are complete.
Of what is there a few pieces are interesting, particularly the early contracts and letters, history…
It is one of the best main attractions in Ankara. Not to be missed. If you are really interested in history and ancient civilizations of Anatolia ( Hittites, Akkadians, Sumerians ) this museum is highly recommended. The museum takes you back to history. Never skip.