November 3rd, 2007 No Comments »
MUSEUMS IN IZMIR
The Archaeological Museum, near Konak Square, houses a superb collection of antiquities including the statues of Poseidon and Demeter which, in ancient times, stood in the Agora. (Closed on Mondays)
Next to the Archaeology Museum, the contains folkloric artifacts, which include a fine collection of Bergama and Gordes carpets, traditional costumes and camel bridles. (Closed on Mondays).
The Ataturk Museum is situated on Ataturk Caddesi in an old Izmir house used by the founder of the Turkish Republic. It exhibits photographs of the leader as well as some of his personal effects. (Closed on Mondays)
The Fine Arts Museum, located in Konak, displays the works of famous Turkish painters. (Closed on Mondays)
The Seljuk Yasar Art Museum is a private museum on Cumhuriyet Bulvari with a collection of 20th-century Turkish art. (Closed on Sundays)
The Natural History Museum in Bornova acts as a natural reserve of the Aegean Region landscapes’ historical preservation. (Closed on Sundays)
The Odemis Archeological Museum is about 60 km east of Izmir and displays regional artifacts. (Closed on weekends).
The Tire Archaeological Museum is about 50 km east of Izmir. (Closed on weekends)
November 3rd, 2007 No Comments »
About Izmir
Known in Turkish as “Beautiful Izmir” the city lies at the head of a long and narrow gulf furrowed by ships and yachts. The climate is mild and in the summer the constant and refreshing sea breezes temper the sun’s heat. Behind the palm-lined promenades and avenues which follow the shoreline, the city, in horizontal terraces, gently ascends the slopes of the surrounding mountains. Izmir is the third largest city in Turkey and its port is second only to Istanbul. A cosmopolitan and lively city all year round, Izmir bursts with an added vibrancy during the international Arts Festival (June/July) and the International Fair (August/September).
The original city was established in the third millennium B.C. (at present day Bayrakli), at which time it shared with Troy the most advanced culture in Western Anatolia. By 1500 B.C. it had fallen under the influence of the Central Anatolian Hittite Empire. In the first millenium B.C. Izmir, then known as Smyrna, ranked as one of the most important cities of the Ionian Federation. During this period, one of the city’s most brilliant, it is believed that Homer resided here. Lydian conquest of the city, around 600 B.C., brought this period to an end. Izmir remained little more than a village throughout the Lydian and subsequent sixth-century B.C. Persian rule. In the fourth century B.C. a new city was built on the slopes of Mt. Pagos (Kadifekale) during the reign of Alexander the Great. Izmir’s Roman period, beginning in the first century B.C., was its second great era. Byzantine rule followed in the fourth century and lasted until the Seljuk conquest in the 11th century. In 1415, under Sultan Mehmet Celebi, Izmir became part of the Ottoman Empire.
Beginning with the 16th century Izmir had an important place in the world trade. There was an increase in the consulates of foreign countries especially due to the capitulations that the Ottoman government provided for Europe. It is known that these consulates participated in the trade activities and each anchored their ships in the bay.
Izmir on flamesA castle was built on the narrowest point of the bay to check the ships entering and leaving the Izmir Gulf. New constructions were built in the second half of the century to help developing of the city’s trade. Among these constructions, the most important examples are the customs building in the 19th century, the sectors of packing, insurance, stock and banking.
In the years of the struggle of Liberation, Izmir underwent a great wreckage with huge destructions and fires. With the driving away of the Greek army by the leadership of the great leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk on September 9th 1922, Izmir started to become a modern city of the young Turkish Republic and developed this character more everyday.
