Istanbul Archaeological Museum

Located near Topkapi Palace, the Istanbul Archaeological Museum is a group of three museums. The 19th century museum contains Turkish, Hellenistic, Greek and Roman archaeological finds and artefacts found in the vast area of Ottoman Empire. The collection consists of over a million of objects which cover the history of Istanbul in detail. The Museum of the Ancient Orient houses a collection of oldest pre-Islamic artefacts including the tiled reliefs of lions and kings from the fabled gates of Nineveh. The archaeological marvel of Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty is considered the oldest written peace treaty. The treaty was carved into stone at the Great Temple of Amon near Luxor. The Archaeological Museum contains finest Greek and Roman marble statues and sarcophagi. The highlight of the Archaeological Museum is the Alexander Sarcophagus, found at the Necropolis of Sidon. The Tiled Pavilion part of the museum is beautifully decorated with marble columns. It contains a display of Seljuk, Anatolian and Ottoman tiles and ceramics dating from 12th to 20th century. The shady garden cafe is the best place to unwind after spending few hours exploring the history spanning across millennia.