Fisherman’s collection on view

MUĞLA - Anatolia News Agency

Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı’s daughter İsmet Kabaağaçlı Noonan attends the opening ceremony of the special section for his father. AA Photo

A collection of objects, manuscripts and drawings associated with the famous Turkish writer Cevat Şakir Kabaağaç, known by the pen name “Halikarnas Balıkçısı” (the Fisherman of Halicarnassus), is now open to the public in a special section of the Bodrum Maritime Museum.

The museum opened on Oct. 15, 2011 in Bodrum in the Aegean province of Muğla. A special section has since been built to house the Kabaağaçlı Collection, including objects donated to the museum by the author’s daughter, İsmet Kabaağaçlı Noonan, as well as some of his personal belongings and historical documents. The collection was opened with a ceremony on Aug. 4.

The Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı Collection displays special photos from the writer’s life, as well as his family tree as well and his personal writings and drawings. Writings selected from a book published in memoriam after Kabaağçlı’s death are also displayed in a different section.

“This idea made me very excited. I was supported by my relatives, whom I call my family in Bodrum. It was not easy to achieve, because fisherman of Halicarnassus is a person who is identified with Bodrum. We can no more separate him from Bodrum than we could separate Bodrum from him,” Noonan said, speaking at the ceremony.

Looking for old Bodrum

Such a museum should have been created years ago, she said, “But this is the beginning. I am very affected by the objects here, and I could cry. We are very lucky to have experienced the beautiful old times in Bodrum. Now the town has unfortunately lost this beauty, and we are looking for our old Bodrum. Change is necessary, but we did not expect such big changes. I am very happy that my father’s personal belongings are still here.”

Noonan donated many objects belonging to her father, including some baby clothes, Bodrum Maritime Museum Director Sema Sagat said. “In this way we can evaluate the objects, and many people can see them. I have already seen people examining the objects very carefully. We have sold nearly 100 copies of books by Cevat Şakir since April. Here we are displaying his passport, wallet, glasses, pens and . We also have some drawings,” she said.