Izmir Bergama Museum

Upon finding the high relief of Altar of Zeus in Pergamon, one of the oldest ancient cities discovered among the archaeological settlements in Anatolia, the first research began in 1865 inside the Byzantine Wall in the Acropolis. These works were turned into official excavations by A. Conze and C. Humann between 1878-86. After these excavations, a small depot museum was built in the garden of the excavation house to protect the artifacts unearthed during the day. The excavations were then carried out by W. Dörpheld, H. Hepding and P. Schatzwann in the Acropolis between 1900 and 1913.

The existing building was inadequate due to the increase in the number of artifacts from the excavations in Asclepion as well as from the excavations carried out in the Acropolis, and it was decided that a new museum building was needed.

In 1924, a number of the archaeological artifacts was transferred to the building in the city center which was used as a Community Center in 1934, and they were exhibited there. It opened the way to museology studies. In 1928, Osman Bayatlı was appointed as the director of this museum. In addition to the archaeological works, O. Bayatlı also included the ethnographic works that shed light on the culture and life in the region in the recent past.