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The Kırklareli Museum (Kırklareli Müzesi) explores the history and culture of the city and region. It includes archaeological artifacts from sites in and around Kırklareli.
Visiting
The Kırklareli Museum is open daily from 8:30am to 5:30pm. Admission is free (as of July 2023). It’s located in the city center a few blocks north of the bus terminal.
Building
The museum building was constructed in 1894 by Neşet Pasha and Hacı Mestan Efendi as a mayor’s office. It served as a municipal building until 1962. The building sat abandoned and was slated for demolition, but was rescued and restored in the 1980s. In 1993, it opened as the Kırklareli Museum.
Natural History
The museum has three sections. Starting on the ground floor is a large room dedicated to natural history. 102 species native to the region are displayed behind glass cases representing their natural habitats. 76 of them are birds and mammals. Some of the species are extinct or endangered.
Roman Reliefs
Heading up the stairs are marble reliefs from a Roman amphitheater dating back to the 2nd century. They were excavated from nearby Vize between 1995 and 1997 and are among the most valuable pieces in the museum collection.
Archaeology
Upstairs, the collection is broken down into two sections. First is the archaeological section, which includes several finds from Aşağı Pınar and Kanlıgeçit dating back to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods. There are also Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman coins and artifacts.
Some of the pieces I found most interesting were an unfinished 19th century tombstone as well as a skeleton and mortuary gifts from Höyüktepe dating back to the 2nd century. The tomb was excavated by a team from the Kırklareli Museum in January 1993.
Ethnography
The ethnographic section takes up the other side of the upper level. There are items used in typical homes in Kırklareli over the years as well as furniture and traditional clothing.
Garden
Outside the back door is the garden, where large items such as amphorae, cannons, tombstones, statues, and inscriptions are displayed. There’s also a nice view of the building.
Some of the items include Greek, Armenian, and Ottoman tombstones; Ottoman cannons and cannonballs; Ottoman inscriptions; and Roman building fragments and statues.
