The Sadberk Hanım Museum
The Sadberk Hanım Museum is a private museum located at the Bosporus in Büyükdere quarter of Sarıyer district in Istanbul, Turkey, which was established by the Vehbi Koç Foundation in memory of Vehbi Koç’s deceased wife Sadberk.
The museum occupies two separate buildings of charming 19th century wooden villas. The original building is a three-story plus an attic wooden mansion and whose architecture was inspired by European vernacular traditions. The building, constructed of wood and lathe-and-plaster on a masonry foundation, was known as the "Azeryan Yalısı" (Azarian waterside mansion) and belonged to the wealthy Azarian family, Armenian Catholics from Sivas.
The building was purchased by the Koç family in 1950, and was used by them as a summerhouse until the decision to convert it into a museum was taken in 1978. The conversion into a museum was carried out between 1978 and 1980 according to a restoration project that had been prepared by Sedat Hakkı Eldem. It opened its doors to the public on October 14, 1980 with the Sadberk Koç collection on display.
