9 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

The ancient necropolis area in Turkey’s Antalya becomes a museum

The East Garage Necropolis Area, which was once a public market in the southern province of Antalya and where archaeological excavations started after the discovery of rock tombs, has been opened as a museum.

The necropolis, which dates back to the third century B.C., was discovered by accident in 2008 during construction work on the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality’s Eastern Garage Project.

Then, between 2008 and 2011, under the presidency of the Antalya Museum Directorate, rescue excavations were carried out in the area, unearthing 865 tombs dating from the Hellenistic to the Young Roman periods in the Attaleia Necropolis area.

Finds in the tombs revealed that the Attaleia Necropolis was used for 700 years from the beginning of the third century B.C. to the fourth century A.D. The artifacts were put on display in the Antalya Museum.

The Necropolis Museum in the East Garage, whose construction was completed by the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, was transferred to the Antalya Museum at a ceremony held on July 20.

Gökhan Yazgı, deputy culture and tourism minister, said that the area was known as a public bazaar but had great potential of becoming a cultural route.

Stating that they will ensure that the religious, ethnic, economic and socio-cultural structure of ancient Antalya is introduced in the museum, Mayor Muhittin Böcek said:

“The architectural project competition was opened in 2005 with the arrangement of the eastern garage and the public market area. Construction of the project started in 2008. Excavations unearthed remains from the ancient eras and rescue works were carried out by the museum directorate until 2010. A total of 865 graves, 1,18 inventory artifacts and nearly 2,000 skeletons have been unearthed in this process.”

“The Necropolis area was registered as a first-degree archaeological site on Feb. 22, 2011. The project was revised and approved by the conservation board on Dec. 17, 2013. On Feb. 20, 2015, the construction of the necropolis was put out to tender and on Jan. 28, 2016, the cultural and trade center was put out to tender. The project, which includes three cultural and trade centers and a business center, was finished on Feb. 15, 2022,” he noted.

Related Articles

Archaeologists discovered on Tunisian coast three shipwrecks, one of which 2,000 years old

8 June 2023

8 June 2023

A team of archaeologists from eight countries—Algeria, Croatia, Egypt, France, Italy, Morocco, Spain, and Tunisia bordering the Mediterranean Sea has...

Research Shows Early North Americans Made Eyed Needles from Fur-Bearers

3 December 2024

3 December 2024

Archaeologists from the University of Wyoming have found bone 13,000-year-old eyed needles crafted from the bones of various furry animals....

The Latest Surprises Revealed by Investigations Inside the Tomb of Cerberus in Giugliano

24 July 2024

24 July 2024

The latest surprise revealed by investigations at the Tomb of Cerberus in Giugliano: The remains of a corpse covered with...

Hidden Roman Passage Unearthed Beneath Split: A Secret Gateway into Diocletian’s Palace Revealed

23 June 2025

23 June 2025

A groundbreaking discovery beneath Hrvojeva Street, near Diocletian’s Palace, is reshaping our understanding of Roman life and architecture in the...

8000-year-old unique “fish-figure” small home tool found in Turkey

20 October 2021

20 October 2021

During this year’s excavations in the Yeşilova and Yassıtepe mounds in İzmir, a unique “fish-figure” small home tool was found....

2,000-year-old stone faces and engravings emerge amid severe drought in Amazon

24 October 2023

24 October 2023

As a result of record-low water levels brought on by the region’s worst drought in over a century, faces carved...

Researchers believe mass immigration to Orkney during the Bronze Age was mostly led by women

8 February 2022

8 February 2022

Researchers believe mass immigration to Orkney during the Bronze Age was mostly led by women.  Mass migration to Orkney during...

An Anthropologist’s life work uncovers the first ancient DNA from the Swahili Civilization

2 April 2023

2 April 2023

Chapurukha Kusimba, an anthropologist at the University of South Florida, has uncovered the first ancient DNA from the Swahili Civilization,...

6,000-year-old Finds in Dorset Downs

11 June 2021

11 June 2021

In the Dorset Downs, a significant landscaping project has revealed a plethora of intriguing findings on a grand scale. Excavations...

New study reveals Dog ancestry can be traced back to two separate wolf populations

30 June 2022

30 June 2022

An international group of geneticists and archaeologists with participation of the University of Potsdam have found that the ancestry of...

148 Ancient Tombs Spanning 2,100 Years Unearthed in the Construction Area of the Zoo

18 August 2024

18 August 2024

An ancient burial site with 148 tombs,  spanning over 2,100 years, has been discovered on the construction site of the...

New Research Uncovers Earliest Evidence of Humans in Rainforests, Pushing Timeline Back 150,000 Years

3 March 2025

3 March 2025

The rainforests, as important biomes on earth, were considered uninhabited until recent history. New findings now show that humans lived...

Archaeologists uncovered a ‘golden tomb’ during excavations in Armenia

26 March 2023

26 March 2023

A team of archaeologists made up of Polish and Armenian scientists has discovered a “golden tomb” containing two skeletons in...

New discoveries found under demolished historic Tawfiq Pasha Andraos Palace in Egypt

31 October 2021

31 October 2021

An Egyptian archaeological mission excavating at the site of the recently demolished Tawfiq Pasha Andraos Palace discovered a number of...

Wasabi Isn’t Just For Sushi: It is an Innovative Solution for Preserving Ancient Papyrus

28 February 2024

28 February 2024

A new natural technique for cleaning and preserving priceless ancient Egyptian papyrus that are in danger from bacteria and fungi...