Istanbul museums will open during holiday

ISTANBUL

Istanbul’s museums, among the most popular tourist spots in the city, will continue to host art and history enthusiasts during the Eid al-Adha holiday, which will run from Aug. 11 to 14.

Dozens of historical sites, including Topkapı Palace Museum, Dolmabahçe Palace, Hagia Sophia Museum, Istanbul Archeology Museums and the Basilica Cistern located in the historical peninsula, will be frequented by domestic and foreign tourists during the holidays. Visitors interested in architecture can visit Miniatürk, while technology enthusiasts will flock to Rahmi Koç museum.

Topkapı Palace Museum, which was used as the administration, education and art center of the Ottoman Empire for 400 years from Mehmet II to Sultan Abdülmecit, will be open between 1 p.m and 7 p.m. on the first day of Eid al-Adha.

The palace, which is one of the historical places that attracts the most attention of domestic and foreign tourists and breaks visitor records in Istanbul, can be visited between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. on the second and fourth days of Eid and will be closed to visitors on Aug 13, the third day of the four-day feast.

The palace, where European porcelain and glassware, copper and tombak kitchenware, Chinese and Japanese porcelain, silverware, Cardigan-i Saadet Office and Sacred Relics, Imperial Treasury, Istanbul glass and porcelain, sultans’ dresses as well as portraits and private painting collections can be seen in a 700,000 square meters of area, is increasingly attracting the attention of Turkish and foreign visitors every year.

Dolmabahçe Palace

Dolmabahçe Palace, Beylerbeyi Palace, Küçüksu Pavilion, Beykoz Mecidiye Pavilion, Ihlamur Pavilion, Maslak Pavilion, Yıldız Şale Pavilion, Aynalıkavak Pavilion, Florya Atatürk Sea Pavilion, which are all administrated by the National Palaces, can be visited on the third and fourth day of the Eid al-Adha. The museums will be closed on the first and second day of the festival.

Dolmabahçe Palace, which consists of 16 separate sections apart from its main structure and hosts visitors in an area of 110,000 square meters, can be visited between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., and other palaces and pavilions between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Archeology Museum

The Istanbul Archaeological Museum, which is home to many important works including the Alexander Sarcophagus and the Kadesh Agreement, will be open to visitors on Aug. 11, the first day of the Eid al-Adha, between 1 p.m. ad 6 p.m.

The complex, which contains three separate museums: Archeology Museum, Museum of Ancient Oriental Art and Tiled Pavilion Museum, will be closed on the second day of Eid. It can be visited between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Aug. 10, Aug. 10, Aug. 13 and Aug. 14.

The museum, founded by Osman Hamdi Bey, the son of İbrahim Ethem Pasha, an archaeologist and painter, has been hosting those who want to wander through the corridors of history and trace different civilizations for 128 years.

Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia Museum, one of the most important works of world architecture, will be open to visitors between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m on the first day of Eid al-Adha, and between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on other days.

Hagia Sophia, the largest church built by the Eastern Roman Empire in Istanbul and built three times in the same place, was called Megale Ekklesia (Great Church) when it was first built, and it was defined as Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) since the fifth century.

In Hagia Sophia, the largest church in the city where rulers were crowned during the Eastern Roman Empire, all surfaces, except for the marble-clad walls, are decorated with impressive mosaics.

Hagia Sophia, which was converted into a mosque after the conquest of Istanbul by Mehmet II “the Conqueror,” is one of the most prominent buildings in the world in terms of art and architecture history and is deemed the “Eighth Wonder” of the world.

Basilica Cistern, Miniatürk

Basilica Cistern and Miniatürk will also welcome visitors during the holiday.

The Basilica Cistern, built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in 542 to meet the water needs of the Great Palace, can be visited between 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on the first day of the Eid and between 9 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. on other days.

The Miniatürk in the Golden Horn, which brings together the rich architectural heritage of the civilizations that have ruled and left their marks on this ancient land from ancient ages to Rome, Byzantine, Seljuk Empire and Ottoman Empire, will be open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the holiday.

A total of 135 miniature models in total, 62 from Istanbul, 60 from Anatolia and 13 from Ottoman territory outside of Turkey, that were selected among thousands of architectural works based on their reputation can be seen in Miniatürk. All models are 1/25th of the real size.

Rahmi Koç Museum

The Rahmi M. Koç Museum, which spans an area of approximately 27,000 square meters in the Hasköy neighborhood on the northern side of the Golden Horn, will be closed to visitors on the eve and the first day of Eid al-Adha.

The museum, which has various sections including Atatürk department, land transportation, railway transportation, maritime, aviation, letterpress workshop, living history, machinery, communication, scientific instruments and models and toys, will welcome visitors between 9:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Aug. 12, 13 and 14.

The museum offers workshops for children on DNA, astronomy, printing and mathematics and exhibits industrial and engineering objects and documents from all periods from past to present.