The Mevlana Museum, where
the tomb of Celaleddin-i Rumi is located, was visited by 2 million 905 thousand
people in the first 11 months of the year.
Mevlana Museum, which is
visited by millions of people coming to Konya from all over the world every
year and has an important potential in terms of culture, history and faith
tourism, continues to be one of the most visited museums in Turkey.
The Museum, which is
located in the central Karatay district of Konya and is considered the center
of Mevleviism, welcomes many visitors both from home and abroad.
There are nearly 10
thousand works in the collection of the Mevlana Museum, which was converted
into a museum in 1926 by the decision of the Council of Ministers.
Konya Provincial Culture
and Tourism Director Abdüssettar Yarar said that the city celebrated the 749th
anniversary of Hazrat Mevlana. Reunion Anniversary International Commemoration
Ceremonies are continuing, and that they are pleased to host a large number of
tourists as they do throughout the year due to the ceremonies.
Emphasizing that the
Mevlana Museum is a museum that attracts the attention of people of all
nationalities, Yarar said, "Before the pandemic, the Mevlana Museum was
the most visited museum in Turkey. Again last year, it was the most visited
museum after the outbreak. Last year's figure was around 1 million 880
thousand. This year, there are now 2 million 905 thousand people. About 10
percent of this is foreign guests and the others are domestic guests. We have
before us the 17 December Sheb-i Arus Ceremony. We estimate that the number
will exceed 3 million with our guests coming on this date and after December
17."
Explaining that the
museum, which receives more visitors from Iran during the Sheb-i Arus ceremonies,
welcomes mostly Far Eastern guests throughout the year, Yarar said: "In
addition to our guests from countries such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and
Lebanon, we also see our guests from Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
When we spread this over the year, I can say that the Far East countries,
Malaysia, Indonesia and Korea are more of a priority. Apart from this, we
welcome many of our people who come to visit Hazrat Mevlana from all cities of
Turkey here."
Yarar added that Hazrat
Mevlana was a Sufi who never lost his relevance with his messages and
teachings, so the interest in the Mevlana Museum would never decrease.