8,000 years of village life to be exhibited in Kirklareli

ISTANBUL

Turkish authorities are working on a project for an open-air museum that will exhibit the findings of archeological excavations through a “time tunnel” in the Aşağıpınar region of the northwestern Kırklareli province.

Mehmet Özdoğan, the head of the excavation team, said the project was launched in 1993 and finally came to an end with findings of the oldest farmer communities that lived in the area.

He added that they were working on many other projects to transfer this knowledge to future generations.

The project site will also include models to reflect how the historical communities lived there and how they conducted agricultural activities, Özdoğan said, noting that the project could be a hit with its potential to draw flocks of tourists.

Governor Osman Bilgin, for his part, said Aşağıpınar has an important location bridging the past and future as it was the oldest settlement in the Thrace region, and noted that the city also played a role in the development of Western civilization.

The Culture and Tourism Directorate of Kırklareli, Special Provincial Administration, and the cross-border cooperation program IPA (the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance of the EU), provided a budget of 2.6 million Turkish liras (nearly $280,000) for an open-air project as well as a facility to welcome visitors.

As part of the project, a time tunnel with findings unearthed at the excavations was prepared to shed light on the historical events, along with the open-air museum exhibiting both human and animal models, as well as agricultural equipment.

The project is expected to be concluded in 2023.