Elbistan City Museum
| Elbistan City Museum | |
 |
|
| Photo by Mehmet Maral | |
| Type: | Historical Museum |
| Country: |  |
| Establishment: | 2021 |
The Elbistan City Museum (Turkish: Elbistan Şehir Müzesi) is a historical museum located in the north of Kahramanmaraş Province, dedicated to exhibiting archaeological and cultural artefacts from this region of Turkiye.
History
The construction of the building where the museum is located started in 1926 and was completed in 1930, the building was used as the government house for the city of Elbistan.[1]
Since mid-2018, the process of collecting ethnographic and archaeological artefacts for the museum has been initiated by various organisations in the province, such as the Archaeology Department of Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University.[2]
During the course of 2021, around 400 cultural and historical artifacts were transported to the museum's exhibition halls, mainly objects from the province of Kahramanmaraş. In addition, the museum has wax sculptures wearing traditional garments from this province.[3]
Collections
One of the highlights of the museum's archaeological collection is the Karahöyük Stele, a stone artifact with inscriptions indicating the development of a writing system in this part of Turkiye, estimated to date back to the 12th century BC.[4]
In addition, the museum has received archaeological finds from the 1947 and recent expeditions to several historical sites in the Elbistan district, such as Hamza Tepe, a Neo-Hitite cemetery for the cremation of bodies in addition to the ruins of Karahüyük, an archaeological site dating back to the Iron Age.[5]
The museum also has exhibits on the clashes between the Mamluk Sultanate of Baybars and the Mongol forces of the Ilkhanate for control of the area around Elbistan in the 13th century.[6]
References
Şehirlerinin tarihine tanıklık ettiler. (2022). Elbistan Kaynarca Gazetesi. (in Turkish)
Elbistan Kent Müzesi, arkeolojik ve etnografik eserleri bekliyor haberi. (2018-07-08). Arkeolojik Haber. (in Turkish)
Şehir Müzesi ziyaretçi akınına uğruyor. (2021-08-04). Elbistan Kaynarca Gazetesi. (in Turkish)
Elbistan Şehir Müzesi’nde onarım başlıyor. (2023-06-13). Elbistanın Sesi. (in Turkish)
Steadman, S. R., & McMahon, G. (2021). The Archaeology of Anatolia, Volume IV: Recent Discoveries (2018–2020). Cambridge Scholars Publishing. (Page 106)
Elbistan’ın tarihine 12 bin 846 kişi tanıklık etti İhlas Haber Ajansı. (2022-09-23). İhlas Haber Ajansı. (in Turkish)
