THE LAST TWENTY YEARS OF RETURN OF TURKEY'S ARCHEOLOGICAL ARTIFACTS SAVED ABROAD

Abstract

Turkey has hosted many civilizations. Civilizations that ruled in Anatolia; While realizing their social, political and economic orders within the primitive state orders, they created countless works that express themselves and their civilizations in line with their beliefs and values. Archaeological artefacts, in which the unique aesthetic attitudes of civilizations are embodied, have taken place in many different units of daily life, as well as strong representations of the past, especially in the title of art. Archaeological artefacts, which are the architecture of civilizations in Anatolia, for centuries; It was taken from Anatolia to different parts of the world in an environment where the reasons changed according to the conditions of the time as a result of factors such as individual state and diplomatic relations, legal loopholes, personal interests and illegal excavations. The return of abducted archaeological artefacts, which is among the important issues in Turkey's cultural and artistic policies, has been on the agenda of the country for many years as the host of lands rich in archaeological artefacts. Apart from the thousands of artefacts smuggled out of the country that could not be brought back, diplomatic resistance in the abducted countries was broken with official documents as a result of important initiatives and efforts, and some of the artefacts were returned to Turkey and exhibited in museums. The aim of this study is to list the archaeological artefacts that were returned voluntarily, the works that were taken back as a result of the lawsuit, and the works that are still in the process of being taken back were investigated. Considering the historical value of Anatolian geography, an anti-smuggling office was established in Turkey. Focused on the safety and return of the objects. This paper presents and evaluates the attitudes of Turkey towards the effort to regain its cultural heritage from abroad. Especially in the last twenty years, the issue of belonging to the land where the artefacts were extracted has been discussed. Countries are working on this issue. Although this situation gives rise to an integrative understanding of cultural heritage, it is also reflected in the political relations between countries. This study aims to make up for the lack of this subject in the literature and to draw attention within the framework of the literature review. Especially, in the last twenty years, the results of the remarkable struggle have begun to be obtained faster. Examples of Turkey's efforts to reclaim its cultural heritage abroad in the last twenty years are handled through the works, and the return processes of the said artefacts are analyzed in a result-oriented manner.