Antalya Museum’s Planned Demolition Spurs a National Outcry

By Beyza Gündüz

On March 20, 2025, Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced that the Antalya Archaeological Museum would be demolished, citing earthquake vulnerability and growing storage needs. Critics note that the building holds a unique place in Turkey’s architectural history: it was the country’s first museum built through an architectural competition.

In response, a coalition of civil society groups formed the Museum Working Group (Müze Çalışma Grubu). We spoke with the group’s spokesperson, Prof. Dr Gül Işın of Akdeniz University’s Department of Archaeology, about the museum’s cultural value, the reasons for opposing demolition and the group’s demands for a transparent process.

"We Oppose Demolition..."

Prof. Dr Işın said the Museum Working Group first took shape as a network for exchanging ideas, launched through the initiative of the Antalya Cultural Heritage Association (Antalya Kültürel Miras Derneği). Over time, 13 institutions joined, including the Antalya Bar Association, the Archaeologists Association, the Akdeniz University Faculty Members Association, the Education Union (Eğitim Sen) and the Chamber of Civil Engineers.

After the ministry’s demolition decision, she said, the coalition shifted from discussion to coordinated action.

Işın argued that the group’s objection goes beyond opposing a structural intervention. At stake, she said, is the museum’s role as a landmark in the history of museum architecture in Turkey. Selected through a competition launched in 1964 and designed by leading architects of the era — Doğan Tekeli, Sami Sisa and Metin Hepgüler — the building has been part of Antalya’s collective memory since 1972.

“This structure is the first museum in Turkey built through a competition project,” she said. “Architecturally, it carries the modernist Republican identity. Demolishing it would mean erasing an era’s cultural and public heritage.”

"Strengthening Is Possible — and Cheaper"

Işın said the ministry justified demolition on earthquake risk, but did not base the decision on a full structural performance analysis. Instead, she said, officials relied only on the initial phase of core testing.

“If this building was so risky, why were visitors allowed inside for five years?” she asked.

The Museum Working Group says demolition is not the only option. According to reports from the Antalya City Council (Antalya Kent Konseyi) and technical assessments by the Chamber of Civil Engineers, the single-story structure — built on cliffs — could be strengthened without compromising its architectural character.

“A budget of 2.5 billion lira is being discussed for demolition and a new museum,” Işın said. “But strengthening the existing building is possible at a much lower cost — around 180 million lira.”

The group proposes restoring the museum while preserving its original design, and repositioning it as a more boutique institution with a contemporary exhibition model. It also calls for building a high-capacity storage and exhibition facility near the current museum to accommodate the growing number of artefacts.

Reports Raise Concern

So far, the Museum Working Group says it has received no direct response from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Requests for appointments have been rejected, and the group says officials told them only invited institutions would be admitted to launch events. For critics, that approach signals a process moving forward without transparency.

The relocation of artefacts has also raised an alarm.

Işın said the group received reports that sculptures could be moved to a football field without protective packaging. She also expressed concern that artefacts might be exposed to sunlight and that climate-control systems could prove inadequate.

“It’s not even clear whether the artefacts are insured,” she said. “We hear they will be stored in containers, but we don’t know whether a generator-backed system will be installed, or whether precautions will be taken against humidity and temperature changes. Since no detailed public explanation has been provided, we don’t know — and we’re worried.”

“This Is a National Issue”

Işın said the dispute in Antalya reflects broader museum policy across Turkey.

She noted that 35 museums nationwide are currently closed, a situation she described as a serious cultural loss.

“Turkey is a unique country in terms of archaeological richness, but there are only 217 museums affiliated with the ministry,” she said. “Of these, 35 are currently closed. This shows that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is not leaning sufficiently toward the ‘culture’ side.”

She cited the Mersin Anamur Museum, closed for 13 years; the Isparta Museum, closed for 11 years; and the Elazığ Museum, closed for nine years.

The Museum Working Group argues that what began as a local dispute has become a nationwide effort to defend public memory. According to the group’s Instagram posts, members have gathered daily at 6 p.m. throughout July in the Antalya Archaeological Museum garden to protest the demolition.

“Beyond the people of Antalya, we invite all citizens to take ownership of this process,” Işın said. “We must create public awareness so that our 20th-century Republican-era public values are not easily erased from memory.”

Antalya Archaeological Museum

Efforts to establish a museum in Antalya began in 1919, after Italian forces occupied the city and attempted to remove exposed antiquities to the Italian Consulate. On Oct. 15, 1919, Süleyman Fikri Erten, a teacher at Antalya High School, applied to the governor’s office to be appointed an honorary antiquities officer — a step that marked the beginning of the museum’s institutional history.

At first, antiquities in central Antalya were gathered in the abandoned Bayraktar Baba Tomb (türbe) opposite the Tekeli Mehmet Pasha Mosque, creating a temporary storage museum. In 1922, the artefacts were moved to the Panaya Church (Alâaddin Mosque), vacated after the population exchange, where the first museum building was established.

The museum later moved to the Yivli Minare Mosque in 1937 and relocated in 1972 to the modern building still in use today.

In 1988, the museum received the Council of Europe Museum of the Year Special Prize. Spanning 30,000 square meters, it includes indoor galleries, open-air exhibition spaces, a children’s section, a modern art hall, a conference hall, a cafeteria and a video screening area.

The collection ranges from the Lower Palaeolithic to the Byzantine period. Highlights include the Natural History and Prehistory Collection, artefacts recovered from regional excavations, Roman-era pottery, mythological sculptures from Perge, sarcophagi, jewellery, mosaics, icons, and metal and glass works.

With its Roman sculptural works from Perge and rare finds from rescue excavations, the Antalya Museum is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading archaeological museums.