Avanos Hair Museum. Cappadocia Underground Hair Museum
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The world of collections and the “hangout” of collectors is wide and varied. Thus, there is probably no object in the world that has not become an object for collecting in one form or another. In Turkey, in the city Avanos in Cappadocia, lives a potter named Chez Galip, who has an entire museum in his basement workshop. The number of colorful strands of different lengths counts more than 16,000 pieces.
When asked how the museum began, Chez Galip tells a half legend, half story about how 30 years ago his girlfriend was going away for a very long time and so he wasn’t sad, she left him a lock of her hair as a keepsake. Seeing this lock of hair tied with a ribbon, grateful visitors to Chez Galip’s shop also began to leave him their hair as a keepsake, carefully writing down wishes for his business and their coordinates on notes, which were then attached to each strand left.
So, the first strand of hair appeared on the wall of the basement-cave under the workshop in 1979, and since then the collection of the amazing museum has been growing tirelessly, adding more and more specimens. The walls and ceilings of the room are entirely covered with the “fur” of natural hair, and given that Turkey is a country favored by tourists who like everything unusual, the collection of Cesa Galip is not destined to become thin and the museum to languish.
Moreover, twice a year, in June and December, the master allows the first visitor of his pottery shop to choose 10 strands in the museum to then invite their former owners to take a free master class in his workshop, providing the lucky ones with full board in his house, which has recently become a mini-hotel. At one time, the underground Hair Museum in Avanos made it into the Guinness Book of World Records.
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People can also leave a strand of hair in their memory, and that has been the case at all times, but is it worth making a business out of it?
I love museums in general, but this one just doesn’t have much to look at of any variety.
This was the first time I heard there was such a museum. Honestly, not thrilled with it. It’s just strands of hair and pots everywhere. Sounds like a creepy place to me. But some people probably like it.
Believe me, there are not yet THOSE museums in the world (take, for example, the Museum of Devils :O in Kaunas (Lithuania)) another thing – whether the exhibits express any concept other than what they are – just a strand of hair.
It’s very complicated with hair. Here’s what they write in the Encyclopedia of Symbolism of Esoteric Teachings:
Since the hair on the head grows on the “top” of the human body, it symbolizes the spiritual forces, they can be correlated with the symbolism of water. Along with the Upper Ocean, hair is equivalent to the Lower Ocean. It should be noted that in many religions, the presence of the hair is interpreted as the influence of hostile forces. This explains why servants of many religions, in particular the Egyptians, shaved their hair, and the Greek god Pan, as well as the Christian devil is depicted with hairy legs. At the same time, hair denotes energy and refers to the symbolism of levels. Thus, the hair on the head denotes higher forces, while the hair on the body is associated with lower forces. Sometimes these two meanings are combined. In the Romanesque capitol found at Estibalica, Adam is depicted as beardless before the fall, and after he committed sin, with long hair and a lush beard. Hair also signifies fertility. Origen, in particular, writes, “The Nazarenes did not cut their hair because they considered themselves pious and did not allow their hair to fall to the ground.” In Hindu symbolism, hair, like woven threads, symbolizes the “lifeline” and connection with the universe. Lush hair symbolizes the “power of life”, the desire for success in all matters. Again, hair corresponds to the element of fire as the original creative force. In the book “The Element of Fire,” Faldor writes: “They represent the spiritual qualities of Man. Luxurious, beautiful hair in both men and women signifies spiritual development. To lose even one hair means failure and poverty. The second meaning, which has a very special meaning, is based on the color of the hair. Brown, black or dark hair corresponds to the earthly energy, and golden hair corresponds to the sun’s rays and, in general, to the various meanings of solar symbolism. Copper-red hair embodies Venus or carries demonic characteristics. Hence, in particular, there is a noticeable distaste for the possessors of such hair in many cultures (cf. the Russian proverb “Red, red is a dangerous man”). The loss of hair causes powers that a person cannot control – in fact, it means total submission to the gods. In some religions, such as ancient Egyptian, priests were required to completely shave off all hair. Full depilation was usually prescribed. Hair, wings, and beards were also used as amulets to ward off evil spirits (similar functions were performed by the smoke from burning them). It is unlikely that the museum owner meant all of this wisdom.
Maybe I’m too squeamish, but that last photo made me want to puke. I don’t really like hair separate from people.
Hair Museum, Turkey – overview
Hair Museum in Cappadocia is probably one of the most unusual museums in the world, the exhibits of this museum are – hair.
The founder of this institution was Ces Galip, a Turkish potter. According to the story of the museum’s creation, once upon a time a girl with whom the artisan was in love had to leave Avanos, and he was very upset about having to break up. To somewhat comfort the potter, the girl gave him a strand of her blond hair – as a memento of herself. This happened in 1979. The artisan kept the lock of hair and hung it, along with his signature, in a prominent place in his studio. Since then, when talking to visitors to his ceramics store, Galip told them this sad and romantic story. Women from all over the world who heard the story also left strands of their hair to the potter, as well as writing down their addresses to him on paper.
As a result, a huge collection of locks of women’s hair – more than sixteen thousand copies – was accumulated over several decades. This set became an exhibit in this museum, located under Galip’s workshop. The potter himself was even able to get into the Guinness Book of Records as the owner of the largest hair collection in the world.
The walls and ceiling of the museum are entirely covered with his exhibits – strands of hair attached to scraps of paper. The contact information of the hair’s former owners is written on them. The room itself looks a bit gloomy and looks like a cave, but this does not seem to scare away its visitors – just look at how impressive a collection Galip has managed to assemble. Curiously, there are samples of hair not only of ordinary women, but also famous personalities: Nurgul Yesilchay, Muazez Ersoy, Seldy Alkor, Semra Özal shared their strands with the owner of the museum.
In order to thank the women who donated their hair strands to replenish the museum’s exhibition, Ces Ghalip came up with an original campaign. Twice a year, in June and December, the potter invites the first visitor of his store to the museum premises so that that person gets to choose ten winners in a peculiar contest. Those chosen at random are rewarded with a week-long tour of Cappadocia, where the museum is located. This tour is paid in full by Galip, who provides the visitors with a place in the museum’s hotel. What’s more, as a gift, the women get a chance to participate in a workshop led by a potter and try to make something with their own hands in his workshop.
Address: No: 24 Avanos Nevşehir, Yukarɪ, 110. Sk., 50500 Avanos/Nevşehir. Phone: +90 384 511 4240 Entrance to the museum is free.
Beautiful and creepy at the same time: an unusual hair museum in Turkey
Avanos is a small town in central Turkey. It is known for its ancient pottery tradition. It is popularly called the “town of Cappadocian craftsmen”. It was here, in the pottery center was created an unusual museum of hair.
Its “exhibits” are thousands of locks left by female visitors.
History of the museum
Strands of women’s hair adorn the walls of the cave of the Pottery Center, which has a surprisingly touching story of origin.
It says that when a local potter was saying goodbye to his beloved, he asked to leave something that reminded him of her. The girl, without thinking long, cut off a strand of her hair. The potter put it on the shelf of his store and told this story to visitors and tourists who stopped by. Visitors, impressed by the amazing love story, also began to leave strands of their hair in the store. Soon the potter had an entire collection of locks.
Thus, in 1979, an unusual hair museum appeared in Turkey. It now includes about 16,000 pieces and is in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Why do women leave a lock of hair in the museum?
There is a second reason for visitors to leave some of their hair here: once or twice a year, the museum holds a raffle to choose the winning strands. Former owners of locks receive a message inviting them to return to the guest house and participate in workshops with a professional potter.
The guest house, with its pottery, is open to tourists and locals. The hair museum occupies part of the store where the clay products are kept. Guests visit the cave room with hair attached to any available surface. Some tourists are thrilled by what they see. Others admit that the presented “exhibits” look creepy. In any case, the Turkish Hair Museum is never deserted. It always arouses interest among the visiting guests. And those who want to add their own strand to the museum’s collection are offered pencils, paper, pins and scissors.
Would you be willing to leave some of your hair in the museum?
An unusual hair museum in Turkey
All of the exhibits are women’s hair.
It turns out that Cappadocia is famous not only for its rich historical past and pottery, but also for its unusual museum, which is located in the town of Avanos. This museum is housed right under the pottery store, and its many exhibits are all kinds of hair strands of 16,000 women from around the world.
The history of the hair museum is quite romantic. It all started when a girl of Chez Galip (the owner of the museum) was forced to leave the city forever and left a lock of her blond hair as a keepsake for her lover. Galip worked in a ceramics store, telling visitors his heartbreaking and sad story, for which they also left him a lock of hair. Eventually there were so many of them that Ches Galip had to think about creating a whole museum of hair.
Hair everywhere – on the walls, on the ceiling.
To be honest, it’s kind of creepy when you look at it all, and the museum itself looks more like a mummy’s cemetery. Nevertheless, it is a rather popular place and there are a lot of visitors, and I suspect that most of them are the same women.
This view alone is creepy.
Today, all the walls and even the ceiling are hung with locks of hair in the museum. True, Galip complains that his collection is not yet complete, as there are not enough strands of hair of Japanese and Russian women. Chas Galip says he has never seen Japanese women in these parts, but Russian women often come in, but when asked to share a lock of hair with him, they say they would not do anything to damage their hair.
The museum is located in the basement under the pottery store.
So, dear women, if you are lucky enough to visit Avanos in Cappadocia, don’t be stingy and give Chez a lock of your hair. But be warned that the museum owner only accepts clean, well-groomed and natural hair. )
