Istanbul Toy Museum

Founded by Turkey’s famous poet and author Sunay Akın, Istanbul Toy Museum opened on April 23, 2005, the national holiday in Turkey that Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, dedicated to children. The collection in the Toy Museum contains a total of four thousand unique toys, which Sunay Akın has collected from auctions and antique shops from over 40 countries in the course of 20 years. The museum’s interior was arranged by professional stage designer Ayhan Doğan who designed each room very thoughtfully and carefully to showcase the toys at their best. The oldest toy exhibited is a violin manufactured in France in 1817. A doll manufactured in the United States in 1820 and beads manufactured in 1860 are among the oldest objects of the museum. Besides the oldest toys, you can also see the Teddy Bear, the communist Superman, the first baby doll of Mickey Mouse, Felix the Cat, Popeye, Smurfs as well as propaganda toys produced under the Nazi regime. In addition, the first floor of the museum is the site of the “Eyüp Toy Shop” which is the symbol of traditional Turkish toy-making. The museum is housed in an historical five-storey pavilion belonging to the family of Sunay Akın, and located in the Göztepe neighbourhood of the Kadıköy district on the Asian side.