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Suna - İnan Kıraç Institute on Mediterranean Civilizations (AKMED)and Kaleiçi Museum |
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The Suna-İnan Kıraç Institute on Mediterranean Civilizations (AKMED) is an international organization endowed within the Vehbi Koç Foundation and is chartered to research, document, preserve and restore the historical, archaeological, ethnographic and cultural assets of Antalya and its surrounding regions. Furthermore, it supports scientific study and research on these subjects and on the interpretation of relations in the Mediterranean basin. AKMED is the first and only Turkish Institute of its kind working in the Mediterranean region. |
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History | |
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AKMED and the Kaleiçi Museum opened their doors to the world of science, culture and art on 18 May 1996. The complex consists of several buildings that are situated within “Kaleiçi” - the old city of Antalya – and are protected cultural sites. The first two were restored during 1993 to 1995 and a third, adjacent, building was acquired and restored in 1999. |
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Serving the research community | |
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The Institute’s extensive library resources and archives are open to all local and foreign researchers and students. Furthermore, it organizes a great many national and international conferences, symposia, colloquia and other scientific and cultural activities. The Institute also provides scholarships to undergraduate, graduate and PhD students as well as research grants for archaeological excavations and surface survey projects conducted in the Anatolian Mediterranean region.
The Institute maintains a busy publishing schedule, focusing on archaeological and other scientific studies on the region’s ancient history. Next to a great number of books, the Institute also publishes two regular journals: ADALYA, an annual history and archaeology journal, and ANMED, a bilingual, annual archaeological news journal, published since 2003. |
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Aims | |
To research, document and protect the historical, archaeological, ethnographic and cultural assets of the Antalya region…
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The mysteries of antiquity |
The Institute supports and encourages scientific restoration and academic research projects that help to throw light on the ancient civilizations of Pamphylia, Lycia, Psidia and Cilicia and further our understanding of their relations within the wider Mediterranean basin… . |
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The Suna - İnan Kıraç Kaleiçi Museum |
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The Museum was inaugurated in 2000 to help document and preserve Turkish ethnic traditions. The building represents a typical Turkish house with a walled courtyard and was restored with donations by Suna and İnan Kıraç. |
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Traditions and Ceremonies | |
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The Museum’s rooms feature traditional wooden panel ceilings and wall decorations and displays of traditional ceremonies and customs.
Coffee ceremony
Bridegroom’s shave
Henna night |
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Exhibition Hall | |
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The Suna-İnan Kıraç Kaleiçi Museum’s exhibition hall is the former Agios Georgios Church and as such belongs to the historical heritage of Antalya’s old city. While the original construction date of the church is not known, an inscription shows that it underwent a large-scale renovation in 1863. The derelict, unused building was acquired by Suna and İnan Kıraç and consequently restored by the architect Dr. M. Sinan Genim in 1993-1995. The museum is now home to various art objects of the Suna-İnan Kıraç Collection, primarily exhibiting ceramics from the Çanakkale region. The space is also used for concerts and other cultural functions. |
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