Flood-hit museums reopen doors in less than a year

ŞANLIURFA

Following the aftermath of floods that hit the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa last year, Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum and Haleplibahçe Mosaic Museum, which were badly damaged, have reopened their doors to visitors in just 11 months, after repair and maintenance work was completed.

"We opened both museums to visitors within 11 months before the end of a year. Our electrical systems and cooling systems in the basements of our museums were completely renewed, and the ministry acted very quickly during the process," Deputy Director General of Cultural Assets and Museums Bülent Gönültaş said.

Şanlıurfa Archeology and Haleplibahçe Mosaic Museum complex, which is Türkiye’s largest museum, received the most damage during the flood disaster on March 15, 2023.

The flood occurred as a result of the overflow of three streams in the city, and the basement of the archaeological museum, where around 10,000 artifacts are exhibited, remained under water.

After the disaster, the waters that that buried the Roman-era mosaics were drained and the mud layer was cleaned by restorers of the Culture and Tourism Ministry’s General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums.

Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum complex, which has the most artifacts in Türkiye, exhibits 81 new artifacts from the Neolithic period for the first time after the completion of maintenance works.

The museum, which opened in 2015 and has an area of 60,000 square meters, also exhibits artifacts unearthed in excavations such as Göbeklitepe and Karahantepe, which are known as the "zero point of history."

The world's first life-size human sculpture, life-size wild boar and red vulture sculptures and ornaments made of beads were unveiled at the museum.

"During this process, we renewed our exhibition. We put many of our artifacts on display in this museum, a human statue which was unearthed in Karahantepe in 2023 is a very important discovery for world neolithic history," Gönültaş said.

Sharing that the World Neolithic Congress in Şanlıurfa will convene in cooperation with Harran University at the end of the year in November, Gönültaş said, "On this occasion, many scientists who study Anatolian neolithics and Mesopotamian neolithics will come to Şanlıurfa."

Visitors who toured the museum stated that the museum was much more beautiful with new artifacts.

"We are happy that the museums were reopened in less than a year. They have really done a great job and new artifacts have arrived. We are waiting for all lovers of history and archaeology to visit the museums," tour guide Erhan Yıldırım, who visited the museum, said.