The Most Beautiful Examples of Sculpture in Turkey

Since the dawn of time, the Turks have been skilled stonemasons. The earliest examples of the Turkish sculpture can be found in Central Asian art, namely the Orhun monumental statues. Early sculptures also include carved stone representations of human bodies. Following the adoption of Islam, representation in sculpture, like other art forms, was abandoned by the religion's rules, and decorative arts such as reliefs, engraving, and inlay were substituted. Even so, human form representations can be found in Anatolian Seljuk sculpture.

Researchers emphasize that the Ottomans did not destroy previous civilizations' statues and embossments and that when Istanbul was conquered, Sultan Mehmed II embraced the Byzantine heritage and protected the embossments on the Golden Gate, as well as the Theodosius Monument and the Serpent Column in the Blue Mosque Square. Fatih had several graves and monuments in Istanbul, which he relocated to the second courtyard of Topkapı Palace, which he had constructed.

Republic Monument

The Republic Monument commemorates the creation of the Turkish Republic in 1923 and is located in Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey.

The 11-meter-high monument depicts the Turkish Republic's founders, including significant representations of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Ismet Inönü, and Fevzi Cakmak. The monument has two sides, one of them depicts Atatürk in military uniform during the Turkish War of Independence, while the other depicts Atatürk and his comrades dressed in modern Western clothing; the former symbolizes his role as military commander-in-chief, while the latter symbolizes his role as a statesman.

Akdeniz

Akdeniz is a public sculpture by Turkish artist İlhan Koman that was first constructed in 1980 on Büyükdere Avenue in Levent, Istanbul. On Istiklal Avenue, it is presently housed at the Yapi Kredi Culture Center.

It is a sculpture of a lady with extended arms made of 112 evenly spaced sheet metal strips. It is one of Istanbul's most well-known sculptures.

When the sculptor tried to describe the sensation of a human hug, he was reminded of the Mediterranean Sea, which he said was the inspiration for the name Akdeniz, the Turkish name for the Mediterranean. The design of the artwork, which is based on paper cutting and folding, weighs 4.5 tons. The sculpture won the Sedat Simavi Foundation Visual Arts Award in 1981 for İlhan Koman.

The National Ascension Monument

The National Ascension Monument is an Atatürk monument in Antalya, Turkey, designed by Hüseyin Gezer in 1964. It's been called "one of Turkey's most significant monuments."

The message that the monument wants to convey is as follows: The figures, located at the far end of the pedestal that rises suddenly from the ground, represent the liberation, our unity, and solidarity, the modern Turkish State, which was established with a series of victories under the leadership of the great Atatürk.

The Statue of Honor

The Statue of Honor, also known as the Atatürk Monument, is a monument dedicated to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's landing in Samsun, which began the Turkish War of Independence. It is located in Atatürk Park in Samsun, Turkey. The monument has become a symbol of Samsun.

Statues of Mount Nemrut

Mount Nemrut is a 2,134-meter-high (7,001-foot) mountain in south-eastern Turkey, known for its summit, which has a series of enormous sculptures placed around what is thought to be a 1st-century BC royal tomb.