Artifacts from 2,400-year-old tomb attract visitors

MUĞLA

Artifacts unearthed from a 2,400-year-old tomb opened by Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy in the Bodrum district of Muğla and displayed in the Bodrum Castle have become a subject of great interest for both local and foreign tourists.

With its Italian, German, French and Spanish Towers, the Carian Princess Exhibition Hall and the Sparrow Harbor Shipwreck, the Bodrum Castle, where the second stage restoration work has been completed, is one of the most visited placed by holidaymakers.

Speaking to the state-run Anadolu Agency, Bodrum Castle Underwater Archaeology Museum Director Hüseyin Toprak said the restoration and display works were close to completion.

Referring to three display concepts in the castle, Toprak said that the first one was the castle, the second showed underwater artifacts, and the last one showed land artifacts that were found throughout the peninsula.

Noting that there are 33 decares of exhibition space in the Bodrum Castle, Toprak said that out of 12 exhibition halls in the castle, six of them displayed sunken artifacts, five of them exhibited artifacts that were discovered during excavations in the district and one of them was used for giving general information about the castle.

Stating that the castle lost visitors during the COVID-19 process, Toprak said, “Last year, we welcomed nearly 70,000 visitors. This is a number below our normal performance, but this year we expect a serious increase; a record number of visitors.”

Thanks to its modern appearance after renovation, Toprak said many international tourists visited the castle during a recent 17-day nationwide full lockdown in Turkey, which ended on May 17, as they were exempt from the restrictions.

“Since the exhibition of artifacts from a tomb, people from Turkey, as well as other countries, come to our castle just to see these works. Items such as rings, necklaces, coins, and pelike [ceramic container] unearthed from the tomb were restored by our experts in our own laboratory. After about seven days of restoration works, an exhibition hall was arranged to display these works,” Toprak said.

The tomb was discovered on April 2 during a foundation excavation of a construction site in Bodrum’s Yokuşbaşı neighborhood.

The 2,400-year-old tomb, which was opened by Ersoy on April 3, was exhibited in Bodrum Castle after the restoration works. It was stated that the artifacts would shed light on the world of archeology.