Ayvalık Rahmi Koç Museum celebrates opening

BALIKESİR

The Ayvalık Rahmi M. Koç Museum, which opened in a historic building on Jan. 19 this year, recently celebrated its opening with a special event hosted by Koç Holding Honorary President Rahmi M. Koç and was attended by many guests including businesspeople and leading figures from culture and art life.

As Türkiye's first and only industrial museum reflecting the developments in the history of transportation, industry and communication in its venues in Istanbul, Ankara and Cunda, the Ayvalık Rahmi M. Koç Museum also showcases distinguished examples of world industrial history to its visitors.

Speaking about the artworks in the museum, Koç mentioned his friendship with late Turkish diplomat Necdet Kent, saying, “Our friendship continued until his death. We traveled a lot. He mentored me and I learned a lot from him. He is the one who Ayvalık introduced to me. He also showed me the hill where the Necdet-Sevim City Library and the mill are located today. He also mentioned Taksiyarhis in Cunda, where our museum is located. So, we opened our first museum in this part of Cunda after the restoration of Taksiyarhis Church. Unfortunately, we were not able to complete the restoration of the church until after Necdet's death. Today we are here for the opening of our fourth museum.”

Rich collection in historical building

The 200-year building where the museum is located is one of the most important industrial heritages of Ayvalık. The old olive oil factory, built in the 19th century, was repaired by preserving the original materials and construction techniques of the building during works that started in 2021.

Following the first three Rahmi M. Koç Museum in Istanbul, Ankara and Cunda, the museum in Ayvalık, known as the pearl of the Aegean region, displays many precious works that are the cornerstones of world industrial history.

While there are classic automobiles, motorcycles, baby carriages and steam engine models on the ground floor of the museum, the upper floor exhibition area is home to locomotive models, toys and maritime-related objects. The museum collection also includes archaeological artifacts.

The factory building, which sits among perpendicular streets and consists of two parts, the oil mill and soap mill, was built by placing wooden floor beams inside masonry walls.

The factory, which reached its peak state in the 1950s, was abandoned in the early 2000s and suffered various damage over time.

In 2021, the factory was purchased by RMK Kültür Faaliyetleri A.Ş. and the restoration work was carried out by preserving the original materials and construction techniques. After the meticulous work, it was reintroduced to Ayvalık with a concept focused on culture and art.

Ayvalık Rahmi M. Koç Museum can be visited between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., except Mondays. The cafe of the museum, located on the seaside, serves as a unique place where museum visitors can take in the view. Also, souvenirs designed specifically for the collection can be purchased from the store at the museum entrance.