Major restoration revitalizes Istanbul Archaeology Museums

ISTANBUL

This file photo shows the Tiled Kiosk, located inside the outer walls of Topkapı Palace and operating as part of the Istanbul Archaeology Museums complex.

The Istanbul Archaeology Museums have undergone extensive restoration, structural reinforcement and exhibition upgrades, transforming the historic museum complex into a more modern and accessible cultural space, Türkiye’s Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said.

The project covers the complex’s main archaeological museum building, the Museum of the Ancient Orient, the Tiled Kiosk, the museum courtyard and the area extending to Gülhane Square. The museum’s main entrance has also been moved to Gülhane Square, where a new visitor reception center has been established.

Ersoy said the restoration was designed to preserve the historic buildings’ original architectural character while introducing modern museum practices. The project has been carried out in stages, with work on the main museum building beginning in 2011.

Restoration and reinforcement of its 1891 section and southern wing were followed by exhibition upgrades, and the building reopened to visitors in 2021.

The third phase, launched in January 2023, focused on the Museum of the Ancient Orient and the Tiled Kiosk. At the Museum of the Ancient Orient, structural reinforcement of concrete and masonry elements and vaulted ceilings was completed, while the roof and exterior decorative features were restored. Its Assyrian, Sumerian, Sumerian-Akkadian, Arabian, Babylonian, Hittite, Urartian and Egyptian galleries were reorganized according to contemporary museum standards. The museum reopened on July 6.

Particular attention was given to the Tiled Kiosk, where approximately 54,000 tiles on the exterior were individually inventoried and assessed. Separate intervention plans were prepared for each tile, followed by painstaking cleaning, consolidation, repair and color restoration. New display systems were also installed in galleries devoted to İznik, Kütahya, Çanakkale, early Ottoman and Seljuk ceramics.

The upgrades also extend beyond the museum buildings. Thirty-eight archaeological artifacts have been placed along Osman Hamdi Bey Slope, which connects Gülhane Square with the museum, while approximately 140 artifacts are now displayed outdoors in the renovated museum courtyard.