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ANCIENT CASTLE OF KAYSERI TO BECOME ART, CULTURE CENTER
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
June 17 2013
KAYSERİ - Anatolia News Agency
The symbol of Kayseri, a 2,000-year-old castle, will host arts and
culture events with the project of the metropolitan municipality. The
demolition of the stores in the historical castle has started
within the context of the project, which will cover an approximately
12,000-square-meter area.
The construction of the castle, which has features of Seljuk sultanate
architecture, started in the time of Roman Emperor Gordion III.
Firstly the castle was used for the security of the artery of commerce
and the city, then in 1950s it was used as a market house and finally
today it was used as a marketplace with stores and craftsmen. The
castle, built initially by the Byzantines, and expanded by the Seljuks
and Ottomans, is still standing in good condition in the central square
of the city. The Grand Bazaar dates from the latter part of the 1800s,
but the adjacent caravanserai (where merchant traders gathered before
forming a caravan) dates from around 1500. The town's older districts
(which were filled with ornate mansion-houses mostly dating from the
18th and 19th centuries) were subjected to wholesale demolitions
starting in the 1970s. The city is famous for its carpet sellers,
and carpets and rugs can be purchased ranging from new to 50 or more
years old.
In the fourth century, the city became central to early Christianity
when St. Basil the Great established an ecclesiastic center here. It
remains a Roman Catholic titular see and was the seat of an Armenian
diocese.
The castle, which has become synonymous with the Kayseri city center,
is being restored as an arts and culture center for the city. In the
scope of the project, the stores of the craftsmen are being transferred
to Hunat Bazaar and the demolitions have started.
Mayor Mehmet Ozhaseki said the project they have started for the
Kayseri Castle to turn into an arts and culture center has begun
with the demolitions of the concrete buildings. Ozhaseki said the
construction and demolition are done very carefully so as not to ruin
the historical structure of the castle.
A museum for Kayseri
Ozhaseki said they had been working on this project for a long time.
"We are going to build an archaeological museum for Kayseri three
floors below the ground. The agreement about the archeological traces
in the old museum with the Ministry of Culture has been made. Also
other traces that they could not exhibit in the old building will
be shown in the new museum. On the upper floors of the castle,
there will be places for exercising Turkish Islamic arts and modern
arts. Places where one can listen to music or eat good meal will be
prepared without ruining the 2,000-year-old history. We are going
to make the creation magnificent." The social life of the city
will experience a recovery. Approximately 12,000 square meters of
the castle will be awakened with the project, said Ozhaseki. "The
historical Kayseri Castle will be reborn with this project and will
have a very different look after all the work. This arts and culture
project is the stepping stone to one of the important projects of
the metropolitan municipality, the "Culture Road Project."
June/17/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ancient-castle-of-kayseri-to-become-art-culture-center.aspx?pageID=238&nID=48904&NewsCatID=375
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
June 17 2013
KAYSERİ - Anatolia News Agency
The symbol of Kayseri, a 2,000-year-old castle, will host arts and
culture events with the project of the metropolitan municipality. The
demolition of the stores in the historical castle has started
within the context of the project, which will cover an approximately
12,000-square-meter area.
The construction of the castle, which has features of Seljuk sultanate
architecture, started in the time of Roman Emperor Gordion III.
Firstly the castle was used for the security of the artery of commerce
and the city, then in 1950s it was used as a market house and finally
today it was used as a marketplace with stores and craftsmen. The
castle, built initially by the Byzantines, and expanded by the Seljuks
and Ottomans, is still standing in good condition in the central square
of the city. The Grand Bazaar dates from the latter part of the 1800s,
but the adjacent caravanserai (where merchant traders gathered before
forming a caravan) dates from around 1500. The town's older districts
(which were filled with ornate mansion-houses mostly dating from the
18th and 19th centuries) were subjected to wholesale demolitions
starting in the 1970s. The city is famous for its carpet sellers,
and carpets and rugs can be purchased ranging from new to 50 or more
years old.
In the fourth century, the city became central to early Christianity
when St. Basil the Great established an ecclesiastic center here. It
remains a Roman Catholic titular see and was the seat of an Armenian
diocese.
The castle, which has become synonymous with the Kayseri city center,
is being restored as an arts and culture center for the city. In the
scope of the project, the stores of the craftsmen are being transferred
to Hunat Bazaar and the demolitions have started.
Mayor Mehmet Ozhaseki said the project they have started for the
Kayseri Castle to turn into an arts and culture center has begun
with the demolitions of the concrete buildings. Ozhaseki said the
construction and demolition are done very carefully so as not to ruin
the historical structure of the castle.
A museum for Kayseri
Ozhaseki said they had been working on this project for a long time.
"We are going to build an archaeological museum for Kayseri three
floors below the ground. The agreement about the archeological traces
in the old museum with the Ministry of Culture has been made. Also
other traces that they could not exhibit in the old building will
be shown in the new museum. On the upper floors of the castle,
there will be places for exercising Turkish Islamic arts and modern
arts. Places where one can listen to music or eat good meal will be
prepared without ruining the 2,000-year-old history. We are going
to make the creation magnificent." The social life of the city
will experience a recovery. Approximately 12,000 square meters of
the castle will be awakened with the project, said Ozhaseki. "The
historical Kayseri Castle will be reborn with this project and will
have a very different look after all the work. This arts and culture
project is the stepping stone to one of the important projects of
the metropolitan municipality, the "Culture Road Project."
June/17/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ancient-castle-of-kayseri-to-become-art-culture-center.aspx?pageID=238&nID=48904&NewsCatID=375