World's most unique museum in Avanos

You cannot see a museum 20 meters underground in any other part of the world. You are strictly recommended to visit the new Güray Museum in Nevşehir's Avanos district. Because, neither today, nor in the future, you will have the chance to see this "extraordinary museum" in any other place. 

Inspired from Cappadocia's traditional underground architecture, the world's one and only "underground ceramic museum" standing on an area of 1,600 square meters will amaze you just like the other local and foreign visitors. 

The museum, the construction of which started in 2008 with special tools to carve the rocks, opened in April 2015.

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Why Avanos? 

The history of Avanos, located 18 kilometers away from Nevşehir, dates back to the Hittites. At a research on the Hittite tablets in 1926, Swiss linguist Emile Forrer identified that the former name of Avanos was Zuwinasa. Another researcher found the name Nenassa on a Syriac tablet. Ancient historian-researcher Strabo mentioned Avanos as "Ouenasa," while the Ottoman documents mentioned it as "Evenez." 
Since the Hittites, Avanos may be called the "capital of pottery." The pottery handicraft, which has been transmitted from father to son and from son to grandson since the past, proves this title. 

The quality of the ceramics made in this region comes from soft and oily clay lump on the hills around Avanos and in old river beds of Kızılırmak. Clay lump is sifted first and then turned into mud after being knead. 

Mud is given shape in machines, called wheel, and turned into pottery. After being dried under the sun and then in the shadow, they are cooked in kilns and heated with straw and sawdust in 80-1200 centigrade...