The Mausoleum  

In 1962 the Turkish Government decided to turn the castle into a museum for the many underwater discoveries of ancient shipwrecks in the Aegean Sea. This has become the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology[3], with a vast collection of amphoras, ancient glass, bronze, clay, iron items. It is the biggest of its kind devoted to underwater archaeology. Most of its collection dates from underwater excavations after 1960.

These excavations were performed on several shipwrecks :

Finike-Gelidonya shipwreck (12th c. BC) : 1958 - 1959 ; first underwater dig in Turkey [4], showing that Near Eastern merchant ships played a much greater role in the Bronze Age than previously known.
Bodrum-Yassiada shipwreck (Byzantine, 7 th c. AD) : 1961 - 1964 ; Roman merchant vessel with 900 amphoras.
Bodrum -Yassiada shipwreck (Late Roman, 4th c. AD)
Bodrum-Yassiada shipwreck (Ottoman, 16th c. AD) (dated by a sixteenth-century 4-real silver coin from Seville (Philip II) )
Seytan Deresi shipwreck (16th c. BC)
Marmaris-Serçe harbour shipwreck (glass, 11th c. AD) : 1977; amazing collection of Islamic glassware

Marmaris-Serçe harbour shipwreck (Hellenistic, 3th BC)
Kas-Uluburun shipwreck (14th c. BC) : 1982 - 1995; 10 tons of Cypriot copper ingots; one ton of pure tin ingots; 150 glass ingots; manufactured goods; Mycenaean pottery; Egyptian seals (with a seal of queen Nefertiti) and jewelry [5]
Tektaṣ glasswreck (5th c. BC) : (1996-2001) [6]
The former chapel houses an exhibition of vases and amphoras form the Mycenaean age (14-12th c. BC) and findings from the Bronze Age (around 2500 BC). The many commercial amphoras give a historical overview of the development of amphoras and their varied uses. [7]

The Italian Tower houses in the Coin and Jewelry Hall a large collection spanning many centuries.

Another exhibition room is devoted exclusively to the tomb of a Carian princess, who died between 360 and 325 BC.

The collection of ancient glass objects is one of the four biggest ancient glass collections in the world.

Two ancient shipwrecks have been reconstructed : the Fatımi ship, detected as sunken 935 years ago, and the large Uluburun Shipwreck from the 14th century BC.

The garden inside the castle is a collection of almost every plant and tree of the Mediterranean region, some of which have a mythological significance : the myrtle was dedicated to Aphrodite; the shadow of the plane tree was sought after by kings and noblemen, as it was thought to strengthen one's health.The Mausoleum, known as one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, is located in the Bodrum village, namely the antique Halicarnassos city. The construction was started in 350 B.C. by Mausolos, the Carian satrap under the Persian rule, and was completed by his sister and wife, Artemisa, after his death. It is built on a terrace of 105 x 242 meters. The antique writers record that the architect of the mausoleum was Pytheos. The reliefs decorating this monumental building were undertaken by Leochares, Bryaxis, Scopas and Timotheos, all famous sculptures of the period. The foundations were laid in a 5-meter deep hole carved into the main rock.

The antique sources relate that the monument, approximately 50 meters in height with the stepped-up roof on top, was surrounded by 36 columns (9x11) on four sides. The roof had 24 steps and on the uppermost part there were statues of Mausolos and Artemisia in a carriage drawn by 4 horses. On the lowest step of the roof there were statues of lions protecting the building. Statues were placed between the columns, and on the pedestal the famous fresco of Apollon was erected. The whole monument was built with green stone blocks and the outer façade was lined with white marble and bluish limestone.

The Mausoleum withstood human and natural destruction for a long time but collapsed during the earthquake which shook Western Anatolia in 1304 A.D.

The works of art discovered by Lord Stratford in 1846 and during the excavations by Newton in the years 1857-1862, as well as the ornaments decorating the walls of the fortress built by the Knights of St. Jean, were all taken by Newton to the British Museum in England in the 19th century. Two original pieces of the fresco are exhibited in the museum building near the Mausoleum.

During the years 1966-1972, a Danish excavation team presided by Prof. Dr. Kristian Jeppesen, carried out their work in this area, providing us with the invaluable archaeological data we now have on hand. Again with the scientific and financial contributions of Prof. Dr. Kristian Jeppesen, a small museum was built here which was opened for public in 1982.

In the covered section of this museum, the detailed information in connection with the historical development of the Mausoleum, as well as the phases of archaeological research and discoveries, are exhibited. In the half-covered section, there are plaster copies of the frescos presently exhibited at the British Museum. Furthermore, in this section, some architectural data are exhibited in the light of discoveries.

Plans are made for the future revision and re-organization of this museum building. By virtue of this work, all the original works of art now at the British Museum will be copied on a 1/1 scale and exhibited in the museum.