Naval Museum in Istanbul

If you’re visiting Istanbul, one of the primary locations to check out is definitely the Naval Museum. You can find it right near the Dolmabahce Palace, on the Bosphorus Strait Coast. What’s important to note is that the museum opened within the last 100 years, and they only had a couple of exhibits. At first, the museum was in the Dolmabajhce Mosque, then in the Besiktas district, and eventually moved to the current building in 2013.

What can you see in Naval museum? You can see almost the entire history of Turkey’s development as a maritime power here. Real Sultan’s caiques, weapon and communications equipment, diving suits, various types of naval vessels, uniforms of command personnel from the beginning to the present, a separate exhibition with the Ataturk cabin and much more can be found in this museum.

Istanbul Naval museum: collection

The Naval Museum in Istanbul is an amazing place to visit if you are interested in viewing old ships and learning more about their history. It’s a visual spectacle since the museum has over 23000 exhibits. However, due to continual repairs and restorations, around 10% are available for public viewing. Despite that, we can see a massive array of items within the museum.

There are glass-made artifacts, along with textiles, stone, wood, official uniforms, cabin interiors, various signal devices, flags, weapons, and ship parts, along with complete historical boats. There’s a great range of items for everyone to explore and enjoy seeing. One of the standouts is certainly the collection of boats acquired by the Sultan during the 19th century. These boats were used on the Bosphorus Strait, and they were specifically focused on transportation.

Aside from that, you have different boats used for shipping. Some of them date from the Ottoman Period or the beginning of the Turkish Republic. They aren’t just old boats; they represent the evolution of Turkey and how its Navy was forced to adapt to the times and adjust accordingly.

If you visit the museum, you will notice it covers boats and navy-related exhibitions spanning over 200 years. Another interesting aspect is that they have a naval library in there as well, with around 21000 very well-preserved books. There are also multiple archive departments for you to check out.

What to explore?

For anyone who loves the idea of exploring old ships, the Maritime Museum from Istanbul is a must-see. One of the standout things to check out is certainly the Tarihi Kadirga, an ottoman galley that’s known for being from the late 16th-early 17th century. It’s the only original surviving galley in the world. Not only that, but it has the oldest hull made out of wood that’s still maintained in a workable condition.

In the basement of this museum, you can find pieces of Byzantine chain, along with ship models, ornaments of naval ships as well as figureheads. We should also note that in the basement, there are a few pieces of the Byzantine chain used to block the Golden Horn entrance in 1453. Most of the exhibition items are undergoing conservation and preservation work.

So it’s possible that many of them might not be available when you visit. However, due to the sensitive nature of these items, they tend to be affected by any atmospheric conditions, be it humidity, heat, or light exposure, since most of them are made out of wood and are very old. Vandalism also ended up being a negative thing to consider, although most of the vandalized items were repaired over time.

Some of the standout items you can find within the Maritime Museum include:

• A stunning historical galley with over 24 pairs of oars.
• Seals, coins, and medals that the Navy used over the past 2 centuries.
• There’s an old collection of diving equipment. Here, you can see a complete diving suit, a plethora of diving helmets, shoes, and equipment. Some of the equipment was even made in the USSR.
• The chain streched across the Golden Horn is a major standout, especially since it’s a piece that’s around 600 years old. The chain had 407 rings, weighed around 4.5 tons and its length was 550 meters. The piece found here is 963 kg; it has 33 meters and features 69 of the rings.
• The Sultan’s canoe with 13 pairs of oars is a must-see as well. It looks stunning; it has drawings of various military weapons, and the pavilion on the ship features the Sultan’s coat of arms.
• Astrolabes are also present in the Maritime Museum.

Historical galley with 24 pairs of oars

The historical galley is a vessel that combines both sailing and rowing, one of the oldest types of vessels in the world that has survived to the present day. It is believed that this was the Sultan’s pleasure boat, as there are no designated places for cannons or seating for soldiers on it.

At least 9 types of wood were used for the construction of the vessel: cedar, oak, sycamore, elm, beech, ash, larch, walnut and boxwood. By the way, in Turkish mythology, the beech is a very important tree — the tree of life. According to the research results, it was assumed that the galley was built during the 15th-16th century (1521-1655).

The vessel has two masts and 24 pairs of oars, each of which is towed by three people, so the boat can accommodate 144 rowers. The vessel is 39.64 meters long and 5.72 meters wide.

Is it worth visiting with children?

The Maritime Museum is recommended for everyone, from young to old. The widest collection, which includes various subjects, but one way or another related to the marine theme, is designed for a wide range of visitors. That is why it is worth visiting this museum with children — great visual exhibits won’t give the opportunity to get bored.

How to get to the Naval museum?

The Maritime Museum is located right near the Besiktas harbor marina. It’s very easy to get there; if you come from Sultanahmet, you stop at the T1 Kabatas tram and either walk or take one of the busses to the Maritime Museum, be it 41E, 29D, 29C, or any of the adjacent ones. In case you come from Taksim or Istiklal Street, take the F1 and then either walk or take the 41E, 27SE, 29C or 29D to the Maritime Museum.
When you go to the Maritime Museum, it’s important to note that they only accept payments via card, although that is subject to change.

Entrance Fee to Naval museum in Istanbul

The Maritime Museum ticket price is 400 lira, so it’s a good idea to prepare beforehand if you have a larger group. But keep in mind that nowadays only credit or debit card payment is avaliable.

However, the question is, should you visit the Maritime Museum in Istanbul?

Absolutely, it offers a great insight into Turkey’s history, with some items being hundreds of years old. It’s particularly impressive for kids because there’s an extraordinary visual spectacle. You can also find an audio guide available for rental. The exhibits are impressive, and the entire visit is designed to be informative and not boring. So it’s a great idea to visit the Maritime Museum either alone, with your loved one, or with the entire family; you’ll have a blast!

Naval Museum: History

It all started in 1897 when the Directorate of Museums and Libraries chose to open their building near the shipyard. Bozcaadalı Hasan Hüsnü Pasha, a well-known Ottoman admiral, ordered its opening. The first name of this museum was The Museum and Library Administration Office.

Since the country’s position was ever-evolving, the museum needed to move from one building to the other. However, it was in 1961 when the museum moved to a building that was close to final. That location moved to Besiktas to a building that was previously used as a treasury. It was at that time when its name changed to “The Naval Museum and Archive Directorate”. An interesting aspect is that the building had a lot of storage space. Beforehand, the space was used for a garage, repair shop, and even an aircraft shed.

At first, only the main collection was moved to this new building. However, in 1971, the historical boats collection moved to this place as well. Soon after that, the collection was open to the public. However, this also brought in new logistic problems. It became challenging to display but also preserve this rather unique collection. That’s why the museum required a new building.

That’s why a national architectural competition was organized in 2005. It took until 2008 to select the right architectural design to create the new building. The new building had the annex exhibition building, the open exhibition area, along with the cultural center and the gallery of historical caiques. However, this process could not start without transferring the caiques to a depot in 2009.

It took around 4 years for the building to be finished. The entire restoration/renovation process was finalized in September 2013, when the historical caiques were transferred to the location once again. The museum started receiving visitors on the 4th of October 2013. And this is the final location for the museum, at least for the time being. However, new improvements and location changes could arise down the line.