A collection of 80,000 pieces is being stored in 50 different storage rooms under the Topkapı Palace
According to the news by CNN Turk, the hidden museum contains, Chinese and Japanese porcelains, treasury, sultan’s clothing, precious fabric, cars and many other items.
A part of the weapon collection is being hidden in the wards that the kitchen staff of the palace slept in.
The kitchen area is currently being re-stored and is planned to be re-opened in autumn 2010. The kitchen area contains the area where food was cooked, chefs mosque, helvahane, Turkish Bath and wards for the staff.
The kitchen ward will contain over 10,000 artefacts which are mad up of various weapons, swords, helmets, shields, mace and clothing from the 7th to the 20th centuries.
The president of the Topkapi museum Prof. Dr. Ilber Ortayli said in a statement the palace contains fabrics, jewelry, European porcelain, copper, silverware, around 12,000 Chinese porcelain, 17,000 hand written manuscripts and archives in 50 separate storage rooms which in total has 80,000 artefacts.
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Prof. Dr. Ortayli, has also stressed that the storage rooms are not appropriate for the storage of the Chinese porcelains. “We do not get any help from the government because the budget of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is very small. We tried to get sponsors but they took too much time to decide and there were a few that did not donate the money they had promised.”
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