The president of Turkey Recep Tayyip ErdoganSpeaking to an international archeology symposium in Ankara, he said that Turkish experts “will first explore our country and then every place where Turks have pressed, carefully recording our cultural heritage”.
“While protecting and restoring our cultural heritage both in our heart geography and other parts of the world, we are also struggling intensively for the return to Turkey of historical works removed from our country,” said Rezheo Tayyip Erdogan.
“If we do not properly understand the history and culture we inherited, as well as the geographical area in which we live, we will not be able to draw our future properly. I always say that as a nation we have been here for a thousand years and, if God wants, we will continue to be here until the day of crisis, “he also stressed.
He argued that “Turkey holds the first place in world archeology”, both in excavations and in the nine archaeological discoveries and said that Turkish scientists “write history in archeology”.
Since 2002, he noted, our country has secured the return of 13,291 historical objects to their homeland and has made a special reference to the return to Turkey of the Roman Emperor Mark Aurelius’ bronze statue 65 years after his theft.
The International Archeology Symposium held in the Presidential Complex in the Turkish capital participates in more than 250 academics, including 29 international experts. As part of the Symposium, an exhibition was inaugurated under the title “Golden Age of Archeology”, which presents for the first time 485 ancient artifacts from various ancient cities, including the head of the Mark Aurelius, before which Erdogan was photographed with his wife.