The area where the remains of Noah's Ark – the legendary vessel whose story is told in the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran – are believed to be located set to host a newly opened museum, rejuvenating Türkiye's Ağrı region for tourism.
Dosso Dossi Holding, a Turkish company, and the Ağrı Governorship collaborated to build a complex, including a museum, in the Telceker village.
The complex will include halls, a cafeteria, a gift shop, open and closed viewing terraces, and a private park area. The museum, which will mainly feature digital artworks, is expected to contribute to the tourism potential of the region.
"With such digital arts and museums, we will show our people that tourism is a great commercial return. Some countries in Europe, in particular, derive all their income from tourism,” said Hikmet Eraslan, chairperson of the board of Dosso Dossi Holding.
He said they aim to lay the foundations of the museum in July and put it into operation in a year.
Governor Osman Varol said the museum will provide additional value to the city.
Discovered in 1959 in Doğubayazıt in the Ağrı province by Ilhan Durupınar, an expert cartographer, the legendary vessel – whose story is told in the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran – remains a source of fascination.
The region around Mount Ağrı – also known as Mount Ararat in English – where the boat is said to have run aground as the flood receded attracts thousands of local and foreign tourists every year and continues to attract the attention of foreign researchers and documentary filmmakers.
In the Quran, it is mentioned that Allah informed Noah about an impending flood that would engulf the entire Earth to save him and all those who are with him in his ark. Noah then proceeded to build his vessel in which he kept members of his family along with pairs of all animals and birds.
