Adana Museum

Eastern Mediterranean


Now housed in an enormous purpose-built complex on the site of a former textile factory about 4km west of the centre, Turkey's largest museum might also be its finest. It is especially rich in statuary from the Cilician Gates, north of Tarsus, which was the main passage through the Taurus Mountains and an important transit point as far back as Roman times. Note especially the 2nd-century Achilles sarcophagus, decorated with scenes from the Iliad, and the sphinx from Silifke.

The museum starts with a timeline from the Palaeolithic Age to the birth of the Turkish Republic in 1923 and proceeds through a dozen different exhibition halls and spaces. Three films take a look at archaeological sites in Kozan, Anazarbus and Yılankale and help to put finds there in perspective. On no account should you miss the stunning mosaic halls (B3 and B4) with everyone from Eros and Orpheus to Artemis and Noah in attendance. The Roman glass collection is also especially fine, as are the Hittite artefacts and Hellenistic monuments.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Eastern Mediterranean attractions

1. Kuruköprü Memorial Museum

0.63 MILES

Just off İnönü Caddesi, what was until recently the city's ethnography museum has now reopened as an art gallery with some ethnographic exhibits,…

2. Adana Belediyesi

0.7 MILES

Adana's vast and rather stern-looking belediye (municipality) council building is a useful landmark on Atatürk Caddesi.

3. Yeni Cami

0.71 MILES

Built in 1724, the central Yeni Cami follows the general square plan of the city's Ulu Cami, with two rows of five domes.

4. St Paul's Catholic Church

0.83 MILES

Built in 1870 by the Armenian community, this church is still in service today as a Roman Catholic place of worship.

5. Atatürk Statue

0.86 MILES

Adana's monument to modern Turkey's founder presides over the busy centre of the city.

6. Yağ Camii

1.05 MILES

The Yağ Camii, with its imposing portal and typical Seljuk-style architecture, started life as a Crusader church dedicated to St James but was converted…

7. Covered Market

1.16 MILES

The large covered market is just south of the Great Clock Tower.

8. Sabancı Central Mosque

1.16 MILES

The most imposing mosque in Adana is the six-minaret Sabancı Merkez Camii, rising gracefully from the left bank of the Seyhan River. The largest mosque…