[VISITING ANATOLIA ABROAD] Turkish treasures in London’s British Museum

If you’ve ever wandered across the atmospheric site of ancient Xanthos, in Lycia (on Turkey’s rocky southwestern Mediterranean shore), and thought there was something “missing,” you were right -- that would be the fabulous Nereid Monument, reconstructed in all its glory in a ground floor room of the museum. Or stared into the hole in Bodrum that was once one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus? Well, some of the finest relief-carved friezes from that grandiose tomb are tucked away in Room 21. So, whether you’ve already visited the sites the British Museum’s Turkish antiquities were taken from, or plan to in the future, a trip here will give you a better understanding of Anatolia’s long and fascinating history -- and a feast of visual treats.

Upstairs in room 54 -- Ancient Turkey

This relatively small room may not be the most spectacular place to begin delving into Anatolia’s past, but it is the most logical. The exhibits are introduced by a signboard informing visitors that “Modern Turkey lies where Europe, Asia and the Middle East meet. This area was also called Anatolia or Asian Minor.” Then, a series of well-lit glass-fronted cases display well-labeled artifacts, arranged in sound chronological order, from the early Bronze Age through to the mid-sixth century B.C., introducing the visitor to wonderful but little-known peoples such as the Hittites, the Urartians, the Phrygians and the Lydians.

Anatolia’s best-known pre-classical era civilization is that of the Hittites (2000–1250 B.C.), whose civilization was centered on Hattuşa, a mighty fortified settlement on a hillside outside the modern village of Boğazkale, east of Ankara. They are represented, amongst other finds, by a bas-relief of the storm god Tarhunzas and a beautiful gold figurine of a god sporting the typical Hittite-style tall hat. Even the non-specialist will be intrigued to see how Assyrian merchants, who lived in so-called trading colonies (the most important in Turkey was at Kanesh -- modern Kültepe -- near the Central Anatolian city of Kayseri), kept their trading records, in cuneiform script, on small clay tablets, each of which had its own delicate clay envelope. From legendary Troy, the northwest Aegean city immortalized in Homer’s “Iliad” and excavated in the 19th century by the notorious German businessmen-cum-archeologist Heinrich Schliemann, are (rather prosaically) a few spindles. The cream of the finds from Troy are, of course, in “exile” in another world famous museum, the Pushkin, in Moscow.

The reconstructed Nereid Monument

The most impressive range of artifacts, however, is in the Urartian section. Flourishing between the early ninth and late seventh centuries in the uplands of eastern Anatolia around Lake Van, this oft-neglected civilization left behind numerous atmospheric ruins on hilltops and ridges, such as the “Rock of Van” and Çavuştepe. Showing much Assyrian influence, the Urartian finds here (mostly from off-limits Toprakkale, now a military base in Van) include inlaid basalt slabs with target motifs, an ivory figurine of a griffin and bronze winged bulls and lions feet used to decorate furniture.

Ground floor, room 17 -- The Nereid Monument

Heading downstairs, it is easy to get sucked in by the crowds and be distracted by the “show-stopping” relics from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia (also of course, with a Turkish connection, in that both regions were not so long ago part of the Turkish Ottoman Empire). But the Nereid Monument (built 390-380 B.C.) more than holds its own with the Egyptian and Assyrian antiquities. This massive, richly decorated tomb built in the form of an Ionic Greek temple, takes its name from the (now headless) nereid (sea nymph) statues that stand between its columns. It’s hard to say how many visitors wonder just how this monumental tomb was ever transported here from its hilltop home, the Lycian site of Xanthos in Turkey, as most appear intent only on clicking pictures of their loved ones posing in front of its beautiful facade. If you are curious, however, read the account by the man responsible for its removal, Charles Fellows, in his absorbing “Travel and Researches in Asia Minor, More Particularly the Province of Lycia” published in 1852 and now available as a reprint. Alternatively, if you’re there at 11:30 a.m., there’s a free 40-minute guided “eye opener” tour of the monument.

Frieze details from the Nereid Monument

Ground floor, rooms 20, 21 and 22 -- Greeks, Lycians and a world wonder

To help put the Nereid Monument into context, head to room 20 to see statuary, jewelry and metalwork from the fourth century B.C. -- and another monumental Lycian tomb (360 B.C.), to Payava, the governor of Xanthos.

Beyond, in room 21, are some stunning remnants from the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (the modern resort of Bodrum). This mighty tomb, built around 350 B.C. and based on, but much larger than the Nereid Monument, has given us the name for all subsequent monumental tombs. Unlike its inspiration, we cannot admire the mausoleum in its full 60-meter-high, Seven Wonders of the World glory, but we can marvel at the substantial fragments of the exquisitely carved four-horse chariot which once adorned its stepped pyramidal roof. Even more impressive exhibits are the relief-carved panels from this “tomb of tombs,” showing Greek warriors battling the Amazons and other mythological scenes. If the Crusaders were responsible for the destruction of the tomb, using it as a repository for building materials to construct Bodrum’s landmark St. Peter’s Castle, the savior of what was left was another emissary from Western Europe, British Ambassador Stratford Canning, who in 1846 got permission from the Ottoman government to ship the remnants to the British Museum.

Frieze details from the Nereid Monument

Room 22 concentrates on the Hellenistic era, that vibrant period between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C. and the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra in 31 B.C. Of course Macedonian conqueror Alexander cut his way through Anatolia in his quest to overthrow the Persian king, and his successors ruled a series of kingdoms on what is now Turkish soil. The main things to look out for here include a sculpted column base from the Temple of Artemis (another of the Seven Wonders of the World) just outside one of Turkey’s most visited ancient sites, Ephesus, and a finely sculpted marble statue of Demeter from Knidos, a remote site on the gorgeous Datça peninsula near Marmaris.

Antony and Cleopatra Little-visited room 34 -- The Islamic World

Frieze details from the Nereid Monument

Westerners have a tendency to neglect all things Islamic, and this is certainly the case in the British Museum, where the ancient and classical worlds grab most visitors attention. This is a shame as there are some beautiful works of art from Ottoman era Anatolia in room 34. The section on this period is introduced by a signboard explaining “The Ottoman sultans and their court patronised the arts on a lavish scale. Bursa was known for its silks, İznik for its ceramics.” Sure enough, there is a very impressive collection of İznik tiles, bowls and plates on display, some fine miniatures and examples of the superb weaponry which helped the Muslim Ottomans expand the Turkic world from the Middle East to the Balkans and North Africa to the Asian steppes.

There are a number of other artifacts from Anatolia scattered around the museum (don’t miss the pair of marble lions flanking the main stairs to the left of the main door -- they once adorned the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus) to hunt out if you have the time. The British Museum, even with its Norman Foster-designed curving steel and glass roof, may lack the brilliant light that bathes sites from the Aegean to the Iranian border, but a couple of hours spent here is an epic journey through 5,000 years of Anatolian history.