One of the bigger mistakes visitors to Istanbul make is the attempt to cover everything within Topkapi Palace and its grounds in one visit. Quite simply, it cannot be done.
In particular, combining a tour of the Topkapi Sarayi buildings together with the collections of the Istanbul Archaeological Museum in a single day provokes cultural overdose. The museum deserves a visit on its own.
Osman Hamdi Bey and the Imperial Museum
Osman Hamdi Bey, an intellectual, statesman and art expert, was the driving force behind the establishment of an Imperial Museum that would stop the destruction, carving up and sale of historic sites within Ottoman territories to foreign nations.
After the promulgation of the Antiquities Conservation Act and the establishment of the Imperial Museum, treasures began to arrive from all provinces of the Empire and in 1891 the museum first opened to the public.
Aside from the neoclassical main building, the Istanbul Archaeological Museum as it is known today includes two other structures. The Çinili Kösk, or Tiled Pavilion and the Museum of the Ancient Orient house contain respectively, collections of tiles and ceramics and works from pre-Islamic civilisation in the Middle East and Anatolia.
The Alexander Sarcophagus
The unrivalled star of the museum is a 2500-year-old sarcophagus from Sidon in present-day Lebanon. In excellent condition, traces of paint are still found on the intricate carvings which adorn all four sides, including the battle scene in which Alexander the Great fights the Persians.
Other stunning sarcophagi fill the room, including the haunting Sarcophagus of the Mourning Women, with its more sombre but equally dramatic scene.
Ishtar Gate of Babylon and Treaty of Kadesh
The Treaty of Kadesh is a clay table on which is inscribed the world’s oldest known peace treaty, that between the Hittites and Egyptians in the 13th century BCE. The battle of Kardesh is considered to be the largest chariot battle ever fought. Today a copy of the treaty hangs on the walls of the United Nations building in New York, but here it’s possible to see the original unearthed in the Hittite’s capital of Hattusa, situated in present-day central Turkey.
Lions, dragons and bulls from the famed inner Ishtar gate of King Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon are also on display, constructed of blue and yellow glazed tiles.
Other notable items include an 800,000-piece collection of Ottoman coins and medal, pieces from the Temple of Zeus in Bergama, statuary from ancient times until the end of the Roman Empire and unusual ‘saddle’ tombs from the Lycian civilisation.
Excellent English explanations are provided for many of the works, however, unfortunately the museum bookshop’s offering is poor in comparison with the collection on display.
Çinili Kösk or the Tiled Pavilion
Originally housing the Imperial Museum collections for the years 1875 to 1891, this building was constructed under Sultan Mehmed II in the latter half of the 15th century and from its back window opens a vista into Gulhane Park.
Today the structure is home to a small and fascinating selection of ceramics and wonderful Islamic inscriptions in glazed tiles. Tile samples from the two main centres of production, Iznik and Kütahya, are also on show.
Istanbul International Music Festival
Each year the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts hosts a spectacular musical extravaganza in June. The forecourt of the museum is a venue for numerous events during the festival, performed as the sun sets and portico lights are gently illuminated.
When to Visit
The museum is open between 09h00 and 17h00 each day except Monday, when the majority of State museums are also closed. Timetable changes are frequent in Istanbul so it will probably pay to check with the hotel concierge.
There is a small outside cafe next to the Tiled Pavilion that sells tea and other snacks aswell as a small cafe inside the main building.
James Heywood - James Heywood has worked in education, banking and finance, hospitality and publishing. He completed his tertiary education in ...
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