Archaeological finds from Troy were displayed alongside artifacts from various parts of Anatolia associated with Roman history and mythology.
An exhibition highlighting the historical and mythological ties between Troy and Rome has drawn over 2 million visitors to the Colosseum, featuring ancient artifacts from Türkiye’s ancient city alongside relics from across the Mediterranean world.
Titled “Troy and Rome: Myths, Legends and Stories of the Ancient Mediterranean,” the exhibition opened on June 11 and closed on Oct. 18. Organized through cultural cooperation between Türkiye’s Culture and Tourism Ministry and Italy’s Culture Ministry, it was curated by the Colosseum Archaeological Park and the ministry’s General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums.
The exhibition explored the Trojan War, the political landscape of ancient Anatolia, the myths and stories recounted in Homer’s “Iliad,” and the journey of Trojan prince Aeneas to Italy after the fall of Troy. According to Roman mythology, Aeneas fled the destroyed city in search of a new homeland, and his descendants later founded Rome.
Archaeological finds from Troy, located in the Tevfikiye village of Çanakkale province and home to a civilization dating back approximately 5,600 years, were displayed alongside artifacts from various parts of Anatolia associated with Roman history and mythology.
Speaking ahead of the exhibition’s closure, Troy excavation deputy head Professor Reyhan Körpe said the event was among Türkiye’s major recent cultural promotion initiatives.
“The exhibition features artifacts from 5,000-year-old Troy, alongside numerous Roman-related objects from different parts of Anatolia,” Körpe said, noting that Roman tradition traces its origins to Aeneas, who fled Anatolia for Italy after the Trojan War.
Troy Museum Director Sinem Düzgören said the exhibition had attracted more than 2 million visitors by late August.
She described the exhibition as significant both for Türkiye’s cultural promotion and for visitors to the Colosseum, who could learn about the legendary origins of Rome through its connection to Troy.
Paola Quaranta, an archaeologist and unit director at the Colosseum Archaeological Park, said the exhibition presented the role of Troy in the founding mythology of Rome.
According to the legend, Aeneas arrived in the region now known as Lazio after the Trojan War and established a new settlement. His descendants, the twin brothers Romulus and Remus, later founded Rome.
