Aydın’s museum is located next to the indoor sports arena on Gazi Boulevard. It was originally founded in 1968. This modern museum has 1,500 square meters of indoor space and a courtyard and an outdoor exhibition area measuring 3,025 square meters. At the entrance and in the outdoor area, column capitals and works of stone brought here from the city of Tralles are on display.
The interior of the museum consists of three sections in which works are displayed chronologically. The museum’s collection includes a large number of statues, building fragments, terra cotta and metal objects, coins, grave finds, and idols dating from prehistoric, Hittite, Roman, and Byzantine times. Among the more important objects one may see are a bust of Athena, a statue of a Nike, and a bust of Marcus Aurelius.
In the Hall of Ethnographic Works, mostly traditional objects typical of the Aydin region such as garments, accessories, decorative articles, hand tools, weapons, and so on are on display.
The province of Aydin is quite rich in historical remains and as the museum lacks the space to display them all, there are numerous objects in its storerooms.
Some of the most important old bridges built during various periods in Aydin are ilhanoglu Koprusu, Cavus Koprusu, and Karanlik Kopru.

Ãœveys Pasa Camii
Located in the district of Kopriilu, this mosque was built in 1568 by Uveys Pasha, then governor-general of Egypt. The minaret has a single balcony and is decorated with muqarnases (stalectite forms).

Hasan Çelebi Camii (Eski-Yeni Cami)
Located in the district of Hasan Efendi, this mosque was built in 1585 by Hasan Celebi, a brother of Uveys Pasha, governor-general of Egypt. The mosque has a marble mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca) and a mimber (pulpit) that are adorned with lace-ike decorations. The minaret, which appears rather slender, was rebuilt around the beginning of this century.
Ramazan PaÅŸa Camii
Located in the district of Ramazan Pasa, this mosque was built in 1594 by Governor-General Ramazan Pasha. This mosque is important in the history of the Turkish War of Independence as it was here that a meeting was held on 22 May 1919 at the beginning of the war at which it was decided to offer resistance. Artistically, it is an interesting structure with its Baroque features, its stained-glass work, its plaster decorations, and its carved woodwork.
Ahmet Pasa Camii (Agagarasi Camii)
Located in the district of Guzelhisar, this mosque was built in 1659 by Ahmet Jems! Pasha. The mosque is also known as Kirmizi Minareli Cami (”Red-brick Minaret Mosque”) owing to its red-brick minarets.
Süleyman Bey Camii
Located below the train station, this mosque was built in 1683 by Hajji Siileyman Bey and is a typical example of classical Ottoman architecture. The interior of the dome is decorated with late-period brushwork.
Cihanoglu Camii and Kulliyesi
Located in the district of KoprulG, this mosque was built in 1756 by Professor Cihanoglu Abdiilaziz. It is an important example of the architecture of the Turkish Baroque. Attached to the mosque is a kulliye (complex of associated buildings with social functions) that includes a medresse, a tomb, a bazaar, and fountains.
Nasuh Pasa Kulliyesi
Also located in the districit of Koprulu, this kulliye was built in 1708 by Nasuh Pasha, who hailed from Aydin. It includes a masjid, a khan (called Zincirli Han), and a hammam (Nasuh Pa§a Hamami) arrayed around a medresse.
Haci Omer Dede Mescidi
Located in the district of Kurtuluj, this buying was originally built as a dervish lodge by someone known as Hajji Omer. It was later converted to a masjid.
Fatma Hanim Sebili and Subyan Mektebi
Located in the district of Hasan Efendi, this structure is believed to have been built in the 18th century. The lower part is a seb/7 (a large, public fountain) while the upper part Is a children’s school
Atika Hanim Çeşmesi and Türbesi
Located in the district of Kdprulu, the fountain and tomb were built in 1774 by Atika Hanim, daughter of Abdullah Pasha
Gümrükönü (Çifte) Hamam
Located in the district of Giimrukonu, this is an interesting example of 16th century Ottoman public bath construction, it is not certain who it was built by.
Cemal Bey Hamami
Located in the district of Kdprulu, this hammam appears to have been built in 1764 by someone called Cemal Bey.
Egri Kümbet
This is a tomb but whose is unknown. From its stylistic features it would appear to have been built in the 18th century. In an earthquake in 1899, the structure leaned somewhat to the right and it is because of this appearance that it is now known popularly by its present name, which means “Leaning Tomb”.

The ancient city of Tralles (known as Tiral today) may be seen atop a hill from the Aydın-Denizli highway. It is located in the district of Topyatagi, a kilometer north of Aydin city.
As related by the ancient geographer Strabo of Amaseia, Tralles was founded by Argive and Thracian tribes. Although it is an extremely ancient settlement, very little proper archaeological research or excavation has been conducted concerning Tralles and for that reason, our knowledge of the city is quite limited. The first historical mention of the city is a reference made to it during the war of independence undertaken in the 5th century B.C. against the Persians by the Spartan general, Thibron. In 334 B.C. Alexander the Great delivered the city from Persian rule. Tralles changed hands frequently among the Hellenistic kingdoms: the Seleucidswere in control of it in 313 B.C. and after the Magnesian wars, it passed to the Kingdom of Pergamon in 260 B.C.
In 129 B.C., Tralles became part of Roman province of Asia. When King Mithridates Eupator of Pontus rebelled against the Romans, the city remained under Pontine rule for four years beginning in 88 B.C. In 84 B.C. Tralles was returned to Rome. In 26 B.C. it suffered serious damage in an earthquake and as it was rebuilt with the assistance of Emperor Augustus, the city was renamed Caesarea.
Under Byzantine rule, Tralles was an episcopal see. The Turks took control of it in the 12th century.
Strabo tells us that the city was a rich and prosperous place in Roman times. Today however very little remains standing of the city that once stood on a plateau surrounded by a protecting wall. The structure known locally as Og Goz (”Three Arches”) is actually three vaults — all that remains of the gymnasium. The remains of the cavea of the ancient theater lie to the north. Because a large part of the ancient city today lies within a military zone, archaeological excavations and research cannot be carried out.
On display at the Aydin Museum are a variety of archaeologica works from the ancient city of Tralles.
One of the two architects responsible for the buildings of Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) in istanbul was Anthemius of Tralles. (The other was Isador of Miletos.)
The “Young Athlete” in the istanbul Archaeological Museum and the “Farneese Bull”, both masterpieces of late Hellenistic sculpture are two world-famous works by sculptors from Tralles.

Aydin is the chief county and administrative center of the fourteen counties of the province. Famous as a region of succulent figs and swashbuckling heroes, Aydin is situated in the middle of the Menderes basin where the southern slopes of the Aydin mountains meet the plain.
Because Aydin is centrally located in geographical terms and also because it is situated on both highway and railway routes over which the economic resources of the region are conveyed to the port of Izmir, the city has become an important population center.
While Aydin ranks fourth in terms of Turkey’s agricultural output the industrially advanced provinces surrounding it (izmir being foremost among them), have had a restrictive effect on Aydin’s industrial development.
With the rise of tourism in the Aegean coastal areas of the counties of Kusadasi and Soke not many years ago, investment activity shifted from the provincial center down to the sea. Blessed as it is with numerous ancient sites and a rich folklore set amidst the seven shades of green, such activities as the “Green Journey” and “Highland Tourism” begun recently in the ancient city of Aphrodesias and its vicinity in Karacasu, Aydin’s easternmost county, have the potential of spreading to every part of the province.
Though we lack definite information about its original founding, the city known as Tralles in ancient times was a prosperous and well-fortified settlement. The city was taken by Mentese Bey from the Byzantines around the end of the 13th century and it later came under the rule of the Aydinogullan principality. After 1308, the town was mown as Aydin Guzelhisar (”Beautiful Castle of Aydin”) and was ruled as = principality for about a century. In the early 15th century it came under Oticman rule and remained so as a province of the empire for five centuries.
With the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in World War I, Aydin was occupied twice by the Greek army in 1919 and suffered considerable destruction by fire. Under the republic, the city was rebuilt in keeping with modern concepts of urban planning and as a result, the provincial capital is today a contemporary western Anatolian city with modern buildings and boulevards.
In addition to the ruins of ancient Tralles, Aydin also contains numerous examples of Turkish architecture — principally djamis (mosques), but also hammams (public baths), khans (roadside inns), medresses (theological academies), and masjids (small mosques). Aydin also possesses a fine museum, beautiful scenery, and opportunities for shopping and observing local ways of life and folklore.

From Tralles to Aydın Güzelhisar: the Menderes valleys become the home of the Oghuz and Turkomans
According to the medieval Byzantine historian Georgios Pachymeres (1242-1310): “The Turks invaded territories that nobody defended. Thus the valley of the Maeander was abandoned not just by brave fighters taking up positions in remote places but also by monks as well.”
At the beginning of the 14th century, when the Germianids (Germiyanogulları) were beginning to put pressure on the borders of Byzantium and capturing territory with their raids to the west, the principality of Menteshe (Mentese) had already become entrenched in what was once Caria and the valley of the Maeander. Before the Germianids turned their attentions towards Karesi, Saruhan, and the Aydın region, Aydın (Tralles) and Sultanhisar (Nysa) had already been besieged and taken (1280-1282) by Emir MenteÅŸe. After Emir Mentese’s death, his son-in-law Sasa Bey took the cities of Magnesia, Priene, and Ayasulug, extending his authority to the entire region. However Sasa Bey fell into a dispute with Mubarizuddin Ghazi Meh-med Bey, a member of the Aydınogulları (”sons of Aydın”) clan. Mehmed defeated Sasa and as a result gained control of the Aydın region. He selected Pyrgion (now Birgi) as his seat of government and having adopted the name Ulu Bey, he established the Aydınoglu principality in 1308. It was during this period that the name of the city of Tralles was changed to Aydın Guzelhisar. The three coastal principalities owed nominal allegiance to the Sultan of Rum and to the llkhanids. According to the Eflaki TeskeresHa 14th century biographical memoir) Arif Qelebi, the grandson of the Turkish poet and philosopher Mevlana, visited Mehmed Bey in Birgi. Ibn Battuta mentions doing the same thing in his Travels in Asia and Africa

Among the tribes migrating from the Aegean were the lonians. Reaching as far north as the middle coast of western Anadolia, they settled down around the Kusadasi gulf where the Maeander rivers discharged into the Mediterranean, and the ancient Latmian gulf, now the entrance to the Soke plain. The lonians appear to have fused with the local inhabitants and then proceeded to establish twelve seaside settlements, among them Miletos and Priene.
Through expanded maritime trade and colonization, they eventually established a strong trading network that encompassed the Aegean, Mediterranean, and Black Sea and they rapidly grew wealthy. The original small settlements grew, each one becoming an independent city-state.
Under the protective wing of the powerful Lydian kingdom, these city-states flourished in freedom, achieving high levels of activity in the fields of trade, art, scholarship, philosophy, architecture, and the political and social sciences. Rich and prosperous cities of gleaming white marble like Miletos and Priene apeared.
Yet these city-states failed to establish any political unity among themselves and thus in the 6th century B.C., at a time when they were at the peak of their development, they were forced to submit to the might of the Persian armies from the Iranian plateau and the bright and legendary sunlight of Ionian civilization was dimmed. Nevertheless it had a deep-rooted influence that persisted for ages. The uniquely Anatolian structures of the Graeco-Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman periods appeared as a continuation of Ionian culture and art on a much larger scale.
The western reaches of the province of Aydin today encompass an important part of what was known in ancient times as Ionia and we will be providing more detailed information on this in the pages that follow.

Since earliest times, the province of Aydin has been an important center of habitation owing to its geographical  position.  The  province is located between 37° 30′ and 38° 03′ north latitude and between 27° 00′ and 28° 57* east longitude. It measures 8,007 square kilometers in area and represents 1% of the surface area of Turkey. Aydin borders on the the provinces of Izmir and Manisa to the north,  Denizli  to the east,  and Mugla to the south while its western border is defined by the Aegean seacoast. The population according to the 1985 census was 746,992.

Climate

A moderate Mediterranean climate prevails in the province of Aydin. Winter is the season with the greatest precipitation while there is hardly any rainfall at all during summer. Snowfall is rare. Aydin is particularly exposed to weather coming from the west. Prevailing winds tend to be easterlies followed by winds from the southwest and west.