Ali Yılmaz creates private museum with 3,000 antiques in Niğde

Ali Yılmaz, a 60-year-old resident of Gümüşler in Niğde, has transformed his home into a private museum housing approximately 3,000 antique items. The collection began 35 years ago with just two items inherited from his father: an old radio and a flashlight.

Over four decades of collecting from villages, towns, and abandoned houses, Yılmaz has amassed a vast archive. He utilizes a 95-square-meter space beneath his home to display the pieces, which he meticulously cleans and repairs. The collection has grown so large that some items are now displayed up to the ceiling.

Yılmaz opens the museum to visitors, including university students and travelers from across Turkey, free of charge. He aims to preserve local history and teach younger generations about the tools and daily life of the past, guided by his principle, “He who has no old, has no new.”