Sights in Central Anatolia
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Atatürk Congress & Ethnography Museum
Opposite the Kale Camii is the imposing Ottoman school building that hosted the Sivas Congress in 1919. Today it's a museum (enter via the rear).
The extensive Ottoman ethnographical collection, displayed on the ground floor, features a fine selection of kilims and carpets, including some impressive examples showing local weaving style; a demonstration of pillowcase-making (another local craft); a 12th-century wooden mimber from Divriği's Ulu Cami; and dervish ceremonial beads, weapons and mystics' caps.
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Anıt Kabir
The monumental mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881–1938), the founder of modern Turkey, is worth a visit to see how much sway he still holds over the Turkish people. Located high above the city, with an abundance of marble and an air of veneration, the Anıt Kabir is one of Ankara's more relaxing areas. As you approach the tomb, the Hurriyet Kulesi (Tower of Liberty) has interpretive panels and photos covering Atatürk's funeral, the construction of the tomb and the iconography of the site. Facing it, the İstiklal Kulesi (Tower of Independence) gives more detail, with models recreating scenes.
Continue along the Lion Rd, a 262m walkway lined with 24 lion statues –…
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Nemrut Dağı Park Eastern Terrace
Beyond the building, hike 600m (about 20 minutes) over the broken rock of the stone pyramid to the western terrace. Antiochus I Epiphanes ordered the construction of a combined tomb and temple here. The site was to be approached by a ceremonial road and was to incorporate what Antiochus termed 'the thrones of the gods', which would be based 'on a foundation that will never be demolished'.
Antiochus planned this construction to prove his faith in the gods, and in so doing assumed that upon his death his spirit would join that of Zeus-Ahura Mazda in heaven.
As you approach, the first thing you see is the western temple with the conical funerary mound of fist-sized stones beh…
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Eski Kale (Arsameia)
About 1.5km further along the main road, a road to the left takes you 2km to Eski Kale, the ancient Commagene capital of Arsameia. Just after the turn-off is the park entrance for payment for the Arsameia site and summit access (TL6.50).
At Eski Kale there is a large stele depicting Mithras (or Apollo), the sun god, wearing a cap with sunrays radiating from it. Further along are two more stelae. Only the bases have survived, but they were thought to depict Mithridates I Callinicus, with Antiochus I, the taller stele, holding a sceptre. Behind them is a cave entrance leading to an underground room thought to have been built for Mithras-worshipping rites.
Further uphill is …
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Museum of Wooden Artefacts & Stone Carving
On the western side of the Alaaddin Tepesi ring road is the İnce Minare Medresesi (Seminary of the Slender Minaret), now the Museum of Wooden Artefacts & Stone Carving. This religious school was built in 1264 for Sahip Ata, a powerful Seljuk vizier, who may have been trying to outdo the patron of the Karatay Medresesi, built only seven years earlier.
The extraordinarily elaborate doorway, with bands of Arabic inscription running all round it, is far more impressive than the small building behind it. The octagonal minaret in turquoise relief is over 600 years old and gave the seminary its popular name. If it looks a bit short, this is because the top was sliced off by lig…
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Ottoman Houses
Just walking through Çarşı is a feast for the eyes. Virtually every house in the district is an original, and what little modern development there is has been held in check. Many of the finest historic houses have been restored, and as time goes on, more and more are being saved from deterioration and turned into hotels, shops or museums.
Kaymakamlar Müze Evi, the most interesting of three old houses that have been turned into museums, has all the typical features of Ottoman homes. It was owned by a lieutenant colonel and still feels like an address of note as you climb the stairs towards the wooden ceiling decoration. Tableaux recreate everyday scenes such as bathing…
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Rahmi M Koç Industrial Museum
In the old Çengelhan the new Rahmi M Koç Industrial Museum is perfect for kids (and adults) who prefer a hands-on approach to staring at a bunch of pots behind glass, and has slightly less emphasis on transport than its original branch in İstanbul .
Walk straight ahead once you've entered the gate and you'll see, on your left, the citadel mosque, the Alaettin Camii, which dates from the 12th century but has been extensively rebuilt.
To your right a steep road leads to a flight of stairs taking you up to the Şark Kulesi (Eastern Tower), with panoramic city views. Although it's much harder to find, the tower at the north, Ak Kale (White Fort), also offers fine views. If …
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Alaaddin Camii
Konya's most important religious building after the Mevlâna shrine, this Seljuk mosque bestrides Alaaddin Tepesi. You may be able to wander in outside the listed opening hours. Built for Alaeddin Keykubad I, Sultan of Rum from 1219 to 1231, the rambling 13th-century building was designed by a Damascene architect in Arab style. Over the centuries it was embellished, refurbished, ruined and restored. Today, the mosque is entered from the east. The grand original entrance on the northern side incorporates decoration from earlier Byzantine and Roman buildings. The courtyard here features two huge Seljuk türbes (tombs), the left of which is the most impressive part of the co…
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Museum of Anatolian Civilisations
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 t…
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Tombs of the Pontic Kings
Looming above the northern bank of the river is a sheer rock face with the conspicuous rock-cut Tombs of the Pontic Kings. The tombs, cut deep into the rock as early as the 4th century BC, were used for cult worship of the deified rulers. There are 18 tombs in these valleys, all of them empty. Climb the well-marked steps to the ticket office.
Just past the ticket office the path divides: turn left to find a couple of tombs reached via a rock-hewn tunnel, or right to find more tombs and the remnants of the Palace of the Maidens. In the cliff behind the terrace are several more tombs. You'll have to pass through the hole in the wall and scramble up the rock-cut stairs to ge…
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Kale
Get your bearings of the urban sprawl you're going to embrace by climbing up the unmissable castle. The citadel is thought to have been constructed by the Romans. It was restored by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century AD, and rebuilt extensively by the Seljuks in the 12th and 13th centuries. The interior of the castle contains the grandiosly named Gaziantep Defence and Heroism Panoramic Museum, a tribute to the men and women who bravely defended the city in 1920. Life-size statues of generals, soldiers and ordinary people bring alive the city's tenacious struggle against the French. Comprehensive information panels are in English.
The quarter at the foot of the citadel ha…
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Karakuş Tümülüs
Highway D360, marked for Nemrut Dağı Milli Parkı , starts in Kahta next to the Hotel Kommagene. After a few kilometres, you'll reach a fork; the road to the left takes you 1.5km to Karakuş Tümülüs. Like the Nemrut mound, the Karakuş burial mound, built in 36 BC, is artificial. A handful of columns ring the mound – there were more but the limestone blocks were used by the Romans to build the Cendere Bridge. An eagle tops a column at the car park, a lion tops another around the mound, and a third has an inscribed slab explaining that the burial mound holds female relatives of King Mithridates II.
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Amasya Museum
Amasya's museum packs in Ottoman artefacts including vibrant banners, unwieldy manuscripts, and an armoury of flintlock guns, gunpowder flasks and inscribed daggers. Displays cover crafts such as rope-making, and wooden doors from Amasya's Gök Medrese Camii show the progression between Seljuk and Ottoman carving. The extensive collection also covers earlier periods; look out for the famous Statuette of Amasya, a bronze figure of the Hittite storm god Teshub, with conical hat and almond-shaped eyes.
Outside, a tiled Seljuk tomb in the garden contains a unique collection of mummies dating from the 14th-century İlkhan period. The bodies, mummified without removing the organs…
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Ethnography Museum
The Ethnography Museum is housed inside a white marble post-Ottoman building (1927) that served as Atatürk's mausoleum until 1953. To get there, go to Ulus metro station and follow Talat Paşa Bulvarı until you see the 'Etnografya Müzesi' sign (not the 'Resim ve Heykel Müzesi' sign).
Past the equestrian statue out front, the mausoleum is preserved in the entrance hall. Around the walls are photographs of Atatürk's funeral. The collection is superb, with displays covering henna ceremonies, Anatolian jewellery, rug-making, Seljuk ceramics, early-15th-century doors and (opposite the anxious-looking mannequins in the circumcision display) coffee. Also of interest are the c…
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Yeni Kale
Eski Kahta, also known as Kocahisar, is overlooked by castle ruins. Although there was once a palace here, built at the same time as the Commagene capital of Arsameia on the other side of the ravine, what you see today is the ruins of a 13th-century Mamluk castle, Yeni Kale (New Fortress). There are some Arabic inscriptions above the main and only gateway. You can climb up to look at the castle, but make sure you're wearing appropriate shoes and watch your step.
At the base of the path up to the castle is the Kocahisar Halı Kursu (Kocahisar Carpet Course), a rudimentary workshop where local women learn carpet-weaving techniques to keep the tradition alive. They don't sell…
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Gök Medrese
From the Ulu Cami, turn right (south) on Cumhuriyet Caddesi and you will soon see the twin minarets of the glorious Gök Medrese (Sky-Blue Seminary). This was built in 1271 at the behest of Sahib-i Ata, the grand vizier of Sultan Gıyasettin Keyhüsrev III, who funded Konya's Sahib-i Ata mosque complex. The facade is exuberantly decorated with tiles, brickwork designs and carving, covering not just the usual inlaid portal but the walls as well. The blue tile work on the minarets gave the school its name.
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Gaziantep Museum
The place to see some of the most magnificent mosaics in the world, the Gaziantep Museum has been spruced up, expanded and rearranged. Even if the idea of an archeology museum usually sends you to sleep, this place will amaze you with its collection of the many mosaics unearthed at the rich Roman site of Belkıs-Zeugma, just before the new Birecik Dam flooded some of the site forever.
It's impossible not to fall in love with the Gipsy Girl, from the 2nd century AD, reportedly the museum's highlight - we agree. Make also a beeline for the famous Scene of Achilles being sent to the Trojan War.
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Koyunoğlu Museum
This little-visited museum contains the legacy of Izzet Koyunoğlu. The railway inspector built up his esoteric collection of rare, er, collectables on his travels through Turkey. Our heart goes out to the tired-looking stuffed pelican, but there is a wonderful variety of exhibits, encompassing prehistoric bones, rhinoceros-horn rosaries, boxwood spoons bearing words of wisdom about food, 19th-century carriage clocks, and old photos of Konya and whirling dervishes. Ask the guards to unlock the recreated Koyunoğlu Konya Evi, which shows how a well-heeled Konyalı family lived a century ago. Izzet lived in the original building with US$3 million of art around him. The quick…
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Çifte Minare Medrese
Commissioned by the Mongol-İlkhanid vizier Şemsettin Güveyni after defeating the Seljuks at the battle of Kosedağ, the Çifte Minare Medrese (Seminary of the Twin Minarets; 1271) has a çifte (pair) of mighty minarets. In fact, that's about all that is left, along with the elaborate portal and facade. Stand on the path between the Çifte and Şifaiye medreses to see the difference made by half a century and a shift in power.
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Hacı Bayram Camii
Ankara's most revered mosque is Hacı Bayram Camii, near the Temple of Augustus & Rome. Hacı Bayram Veli was a Muslim 'saint' who founded the Bayramiye dervish order around 1400. Ankara was the order's centre and Hacı Bayram Veli is still revered by pious Muslims. The mosque precincts are ringed with shops selling religious paraphernalia (including wooden toothbrushes as used, supposedly, by the Prophet Mohammed).
You can buy food to feed the pigeons in the nearby pigeon feeding area (Güvercin Yemleme Alanı).
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Hasan Süzer Ethnography Museum
Occupying a restored 200-year-old Gaziantep stone house tucked away in a side street off Atatürk Bulvarı, this museum is well worth a visit. A central hayat (courtyard) patterned with light and dark stone provides access to the rooms. Those on the ground floor were for service; those on the 1st floor made up the selamlık (quarters for male family members and their visitors); and those on the 2nd floor made up the haremlik (for female family members and their visitors).
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Sahib-i Ata Külliyesi
A few blocks south of the Tombstone Museum, along Sırçalı Medrese Caddesi, is this mosque complex. Behind its requisite grand entrance with built-in minaret is the Sahib-i Ata Camii, originally constructed during the reign of Alaaddin Keykavus. Destroyed by fire in 1871, it was rebuilt in 13th-century style. The mihrab is a fine example of blue Seljuk tile work. Alongside the mosque another grand gateway once led to a dervish lodge.
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Archaeological Museum
The small but interesting Archaeological Museum, beside the Sahib-i Ata Külliyesi, houses local Iron Age artefacts, Byzantine mosaics from Sille and Çorum, some bizarre lumpy Assyrian lamps, and several impressive, intact sarcophagi decorated with high-relief carvings. However, the unusually informative displays on Neolithic Çatalhöyük, 50km southeast of Konya are the top draw, combining a good explanation of the site with finds including necklaces, rings and a fragment of wall painting.
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Ulu Cami
The town's other sights are southeast of Hükümet Meydanı along Cemal Gürsel and Cumhuriyet Caddesis; walk just past the southern end of the park and turn left onto Cemal Gürsel Caddesi.
The Ulu Cami 9Great Mosque; 1197) is Sivas' oldest significant building, and one of Anatolia's oldest mosques. Built by the Danışmends, it's a large, low room with a forest of 50 columns. The super-fat leaning brick minaret was added in 1213. Inside, 11 handmade stone bands surround the main praying area and the ornate mihrab was discovered during renovations in 1955. It has a certain old-Anatolian charm, slightly marred by modern additions.
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Tile Museum
Housed in a former Seljuk theological school, this museum was closed for restoration when we visited. The building was constructed in 1251–52 by Emir Celaleddin Karatay, a Seljuk general, vizier and statesman who is buried in one of the corner rooms. The museum is well worth a look if it reopens before your visit; the outstanding collection of ceramics includes interesting octagonal Seljuk tiles.
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