4,000-Year-Old Cuneiform Tablets in Kayseri Meet Visitors
While Kültepe tablets exhibited within the scope of the Turkey Culture Route Festival attract attention, preparations continue for the rock-carved museum scheduled to open next year.
While the 4,000-year-old cuneiform tablets exhibited at the Kayseri Archaeology Museum within the scope of the Turkey Culture Route Festival in Kayseri draw great interest, the rock-carved Kültepe Museum, where these artifacts will be preserved, is planned to open next year.
Artifacts at the Kayseri Archaeology Museum
The Archaeology Museum inside Kayseri Castle is welcoming visitors within the scope of the Turkey Culture Route Festival organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
While the museum houses 38,000 artifacts in its inventory, 2,000 of them are on display, with historical objects uncovered during excavations in Kültepe particularly standing out.
Anatolia's Oldest Written Texts
The 4,000-year-old cuneiform tablets unearthed during excavations ongoing since 1948 in Kültepe's Karum rank among the most valuable pieces in the museum.
Containing debt notes belonging to Assyrian merchants, business letters, court records, house purchase agreements, and tax details, these texts hold the distinction of being Anatolia's oldest known written documents.
New Rock-Carved Museum Project
Kayseri Archaeology Museum Director Gökhan Yıldız stated that approximately 25,000 tablets have been found in Kültepe to date, with 5,000 of them preserved in museums in Kayseri.
The rock-carved Kültepe Museum, built near the Kültepe archaeological site to house the tablets included in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, will open its doors next year.
Progress of Kültepe Excavations
It was reported that excavation work in Kültepe, which served as the first capital of the Hittites, has currently been completed on less than 5 percent of the site.
Future excavations are expected to bring even more of the historical riches in the region to light.
Culture Route Festival Activities
Continuing until September 13, the Kayseri Culture Route Festival is hosting a total of 185 activities, including exhibitions, concerts, theatrical plays, and workshops.
The Living Heritage Kayseri exhibition within the scope of the festival also displays works by artist Resmiye Kaşıkara that blend calligraphy and painting arts.