Ankara Palas Müzesi

About Ankara Palas Müzesi

Ankara Palas Müzesi occupies Ankara Palas, one of the landmark early Republican buildings of the capital, on Cumhuriyet Caddesi in Ulus, opposite the Second Assembly building. The building was first designed by architect Vedat Tek as a parliamentary club and state guest house, with foundations laid in 1924, and was completed to a new design by architect Kemalettin Bey. It was run as a hotel by the pious foundations administration, known as the Evkaf Oteli, until 1975. Foreign delegations stayed here and international meetings were held here, and in the 1930s it was a gathering place for members of parliament, journalists and artists. After use as offices and exhibition space by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, it reopened in 1983 as the Ankara Palas State Guest House, and in 2018 it passed to the National Palaces Administration. After a long restoration, the building opened as a museum on 21 February 2024. According to National Palaces, its five halls cover about 1000 square metres and display close to 1200 objects. These include 16th to 19th century pieces from the National Palaces collections, portraits by İbrahim Çallı and Feyhaman Duran, clocks, European-made silverware used in Ottoman palaces and at Ankara Palas, manuscripts and printed books from the library of Caliph Abdülmecid Efendi, and personal belongings of Atatürk. The museum also has a library, a conference hall, a workshop for children and a cafeteria, and National Palaces holds a monthly series of Ankara Palas Conferences here. In its first year the museum received 209210 visitors. The museum is open every day except Monday, with ticket offices open from 09:00 to 17:00 according to the official visiting information. An audio guide is offered at the entrance. Children aged 0 to 6 enter free, students aged 7 to 25 get discounted tickets, and the Museum Card is accepted.