The key facts

  • The museum opened on September 30, with 3,300 items on display from a collection of over 62,000
  • The centerpiece is the 'Amazon Sarcophagus' from around 160 AD
  • The relocation of the 1999 ceramics museum nearly doubled the exhibition space

New museum combines archaeology, crafts and mining

In western Turkey, in the city of Kütahya, the Archaeology and Mining Museum opened on September 30. Its exhibition features 3,300 artifacts selected from a collection of more than 62,000 items. According to museum director Sevgi Gurdal, the complex brings together the region's archaeological heritage, traditional crafts, and the history of mining.

The Amazon Sarcophagus and finds from Aizanoi

The centerpiece is the so-called Amazon Sarcophagus, dated to approximately 160 AD: it depicts battles between Greek warriors and mythical Amazon women. The museum also displays statuettes and coins from the ancient city of Aizanoi, home to one of the best-preserved temples of Zeus in Anatolia. Among the exhibits are a rare Roman sarcophagus and ancient coins.

Ceramics from the Seljuks to the present day

A separate section of the complex is devoted to ceramics — the collection spans the period from the Seljuk era to the present, with works from the 19th and early 20th centuries forming the core of the exhibition. Kütahya has historically been known as a center of ceramic production, and the ceramics museum established there in 1999 has moved into the new complex, which nearly doubled the exhibition space.