Three wooden buildings arranged around a courtyard make up Çatalhöyük Visitor Center, which Istanbul studio Te?et has created on a Neolithic archaeological site in central Turkey.
Commissioned by the local municipality, the visitor centre is located at Çatalhöyük ? the site of one of the world's oldest known settlements, which dates back to the eighth century BC.
Te?et has created a visitor centre on the site of a Neolithic settlement
Te?et's design of three buildings and a courtyard is based on the layout of the old settlement in southern Anatolia and aims to improve the visitor experience for both the public and archaeologists.
"Our articulation strategy was based on the existing or pre-existing elements on-site," Te?et told Dezeen. It comprises three buildings arranged around a courtyard
"We don't define Çatalhöyük Visitor Center as a museum or an exhibition building, but as a spine that organises the experience and movement of visitors in relation to the existing elements on site," Te?et continued.
"The existing conditions were not fulfilling for the main users, archaeologists, but the program strategy also looks to embrace visitors in order to support Çatalhöyük excavations and create a more dynamic atmosphere," it continued.
"The central courtyard is the core of the project as it is the encounter area of all three programs."
One of the buildings incorporates a viewing tower
Çatalhöyük Visitor Center's largest bui...