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Zeugma Mosaic Museum, located on the historical Silk Road in Gaziantep, is among the most important museums in the world in terms of both its structural complex and the works it contains. The museum, which you should definitely visit during your visit to Gaziantep, is also the most visited museum in Antep. The total seating area of the Zeugma Mosaic Museum, which was officially opened in September 2011, is 30,000 m2.

When you first enter the museum, I think you should watch the twelve-minute promotional film about the ancient city of Zeugma, watched with three-dimensional glasses, in the presentation room on the left. This short film will help you visually about Zeugma before your visit and will give you an idea of what the city was like in the past. The project of the museum is based on a scenario, the basis of which is the artistic and cultural aspects of Zeugma and the details of daily life. Zeugma Mosaic Museum is shaped around this basic idea. For this reason, in the exhibition held at the Zeugma Mosaic Museum; The beliefs, culture and daily life of the people who lived in the city at that time were tried to be presented to the visitors in real size, with its streets, fountains, walls and all building blocks in accordance with its architecture, and visitors try to understand the city by walking on these walking paths. In the exhibition halls, headsets provide information about the works in different languages, and kiosks on the exhibition hall tour route provide visitors with information about the history of the mosaics, the excavation area and their location within the museum, via touch screens. There are also information plates next to each work. In the collection of Zeugma Mosaic Museum; 2748 m2 of mosaics, 140 m2 of frescoes, 4 Roman fountains, 20 columns, 4 limestone statues, a bronze Mars Statue, grave steles, sarcophagi and architectural pieces from the Roman and Late Antique Periods were restored and presented to visitors.

Another important find in Zeugma is a 1.50-meter bronze statue of Mars from the Roman period. According to archaeologist Fatma Bulgan, who carried out the first cleaning of Mars, the Roman equivalent of "Ares", the god of war in ancient Greece, "Mars" is a very important god in Rome. It symbolizes abundance and power. Mars is a warrior god and with this character he fits the city. Zeugma is also a city built on fertile lands on the banks of the Euphrates. Therefore, Mars is very important for Zeugma. The bronze statue, which remained underground for approximately eighteen hundred years, was covered by a hard limestone layer and there were burn marks on the statue. Archaeologists think that these are traces of the Parthians' capture and destruction of Zeugma in 252 AD.

Another most important work in the Zeugma Mosaic Museum is the Mainad Mosaic, also known as the Gypsy Girl. This work is exhibited alone in a special room. The purpose of the special design of the room is to reveal the misty gaze of the Gypsy Girl. The Zeugma Mosaics, which were taken abroad during illegal excavations at the Zeugma Ruins in the 1960s and were purchased by Bowling Green State University from an art dealer named Peter Marks for 35 thousand dollars in 1965, were placed under glass at the entrance of the Wolfe Art Center at the university until last year. It was displayed laid out in a panel. Among the artifacts stolen from the border of the Gypsy Girl mosaic were 12 pieces such as satyr, pan and maenad masks and figures of various bird species. Fragments of the Gypsy Girl Mosaic also recently returned home from the United States.

SOURCE: https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/yazarlar/ugur-celikkol/tarihe-bir-gecit-zeugma-antik-kenti-mozaik-muzesi-41959449

Belkıs/Zeugma Ancient City is located on the banks of the Euphrates River within the borders of Belkıs Village, Nizip District, Gaziantep Province. Built on approximately 20 thousand acres of land…

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