In southeastern Türkiye, the Diyarbakır Museum has opened a new exhibition featuring 350 restored stone artifacts in its garden, allowing visitors to explore more of the region’s ancient heritage.
Acting director Müjdat Gizligöl said the museum’s collection includes more than 36,000 registered pieces, though only about 1,600 had been on display until now.
“After the restoration work, we have now added 350 more stone pieces to our exhibition,” he said.
Founded in 1934, the Diyarbakır Museum is among Türkiye’s oldest and most established museums. When it was first established, many artifacts from surrounding provinces were brought to Diyarbakır for preservation, as there were no other museums in the region at the time. Due to limited indoor space, a large number of items had long remained in storage.
According to Gizligöl, the new display focuses on large stone pieces that had been kept in the museum’s depots.
“Visitors often told us they wanted to see artifacts in the garden as well. So, we launched two projects,” he explained.
According to Gizligöl, the newly restored items are now displayed in the museum’s garden as part of two themed areas designed to showcase different civilizations that once lived in the region.
One area features 22 columns and column bases from the Roman period, along with nine statues representing various civilizations.
“Our goal is for visitors to walk through this path and feel the presence of the ancient civilizations,” Gizligöl explained.
The other section includes tombstones inscribed in several languages, representing different faiths, as well as other stone objects used for various purposes.
