If you want an unforgettable museum experience, you can visit Istanbul Archaeological Museum Complex, which is the first Turkish museum and one of the world’s largest museums consisting of three major sections; The Archaeology Museum, The Museum of Ancient Orient, The Tiled Kiosk Museum. The Museum Complex includes about a million artifacts from variety of cultures, brought from the lands of Ottoman Empire.

The history of Istanbul Archaeological Museum dates back to 1869, which was named as Imperial Museum then. Not only the artifacts but also the buildings in the Museum Complex has a rich history; the building of The Tiled Kiosk Museum displaying rare examples of Turkish tiles and ceramics, dates back to 1472. The building of the Museum of Ancient Oriental displays artifacts of Hittite, Urartian, Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Iran, Ancient Arabian and dates back to 1883, which was used as the Academy of Fine Arts then. To exhibit Alexander Sarcophagus and Tomb of ‘Mourning Women’ which were excavated by Osman Hamdi Bey, the museum director in those years, a new building, Istanbul Archaeological Museum Classical Building, was constructed by the prominent architect Alexandre Vallaury in 1891. The Museum Complex is located in Sultanahmet between Gulhane Park and Topkapi Palace Museum.

We invite you to explore this magnificent Istanbul Archaeological Museum Complex and enjoy the rich history in the heart of Istanbul.