Alexander Çıkrık, who serves as priest of the Sveti Georgi Bulgarian Orthodox Church in western Turkey's Edirne province, has transformed the church's second floor into a museum showcasing traditional clothes and jewelry, which were worn by Turkish and Bulgarian women in the Balkans dating back to the 17th century.
Priest Çıkrık first started the exhibition using the clothes and accessories he found in his mother's and grandmother's old closet eight years ago.
The exhibition transformed into a fully-fledged museum when a museum director from Bulgaria discovered the small church and launched a temporary closet project, sending the priest hundreds of new pieces.
A new arrangement was made with the Sveti Georgi church, which began to display clothes, jewelry and household goods used up to 400 years ago.
The exhibition expanded further with new items to display thanks to the donations from Turkish and Bulgarian citizens, who were happy to share their family heritage through clothing and jewelry.
Alexander Çıkrık said that the museum exhibits how similar the clothes of Turkish and Bulgarian women were in that period, and that borders did not limit the common characteristics of Balkan countries.
Currently, the museum in Edirne's Barutluk neighborhood displays clothing ranging from the years 1700 to 1900 and attracts hundreds of local and international tourists every year.