Nigde Museum

Nigde Museum

Located in the heart of Nigde city, the Nigde Museum boasts an impressive collection that represents the cultural heritage of Middle Anatolia.

The museum's exhibits are displayed in a chronological order. The first room showcases prehistoric finds, including artifacts made of obsidian such as spear points and arrowheads, which date back to the 12th millennium BC. These objects have been excavated from various sites including Golludag, Kosk Hoyuk, Pınarbasi, and Kaletepe. Visitors can also see a reconstructed house from Kosk Hoyuk, which dates back to the 6th and 5th millennia BC. This section also features pottery from the same period.

Nigde Museum

Moving on to Room 2, visitors can view steles and other objects from the Neo-Hittite/Luwian and Phrygian periods. One of the most notable objects is the Niğde Stele, discovered near the Citadel of Niğde. This stele, dating back to the 8th century BC, depicts a weather god and was dedicated to Warpalawas, King of Tuwana, by his son Muwaharanis.

Room 2 also showcases objects from the Bronze Age and the time of the Assyrian trade colonies (Karum), which have been excavated from sites such as Acemhöyük and prehistoric tin mines near Kestel.

Room 2 showcases objects from the Neo-Hittite/Luwian and Phrygian periods, including the Niğde Stele, a weather god depiction that was dedicated to King Warpalawas of Tuwana by his son Muwaharanis in the 8th century BC. The Andaval Stele, which mentions Warpalawas and was discovered in the floor of a Byzantine church at Andaval, can also be seen in plaster cast form. Another stele from the period was found at Keşlik, but its inscription is now illegible. Artifacts from the Phrygian period, including items from Porsuk, Tepebağları, Kaynarca, Kemerhisar, and the Niğde citadel, are also part of the museum's collection.

Room 4 features Graeco-Roman period artifacts, mainly from Tyana, such as inscriptions, statues, reliefs, a sarcophagus, small finds, and pottery. The entrance to Room 5 leads to a smaller room displaying coins from the Hellenistic, Roman Byzantine, and Islamic periods. Inside Room 5, visitors can see mummies of a woman and four children from an early Christian church located in Ihlara Valley that date back to the 10th century AD. Room 6 showcases an ethnographic display containing books, carpets, weapons, and traditional costumes.