Halil Ibrahim Izgi
Time often hides itself in the silence of objects. To hear this silence and begin a journey into the past through the whispers of documents requires a special sensitivity, a meticulous eye, and a powerful storyteller. In Türkiye, one of the few individuals who master this craft is Hasan Mert Kaya. As one of the country’s foremost researchers in the field of object historiography, Kaya stands out not only as a collector but as a cultural archaeologist who turns the past into a living narrative.
In many respects, he is like a modern-day Ibn Battuta – traveling between cultures, not just places. He has journeyed to various parts of the world, experiencing different cultures and their unique rhythms. More importantly, he has built bridges between them. Through the lenses of history, art, and material culture, he aims to revive the dialogue between these civilizations. This work seeks to bring back the ancient conversations between East and West and between the past and the present.
Beyond this, Kaya is also a passionate explorer of different methods of remembrance. His curatorial work – each exhibition crafted like a cinematic frame – reveals a masterful command over the cultural art of documentation and display. He treats every object as a scene, every document as a voice from history. In this way, his work becomes more than scholarship; it becomes a form of visual storytelling.
Importantly, Kaya’s work extends far beyond Türkiye. He currently leads ongoing cultural and historical projects in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, where he continues to unearth the shared legacies of Turkic and Islamic worlds. In the near future, through these initiatives, he will further enrich our understanding of the lands we all, in one way or another, carry within us.
His latest contribution, “The Memory of the Land” exhibition, offers more than a glimpse into history. Based on the archives of the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, the exhibition showcases rare materials – from 13th-century foundation charters to cadastral surveying instruments and Ottoman tax registers from the 15th and 17th centuries.
As Kaya recently expressed in one of his writings: “Title deeds do not only indicate who owns which property. They also reflect a society’s past, its economic structure, political shifts and even cultural transformations.” This is precisely the perspective that shapes “The Memory of the Land.”
With academic training and field expertise, Hasan Mert Kaya brings depth and clarity to objects, giving them life and meaning. His narrative methods help us not only remember the past but reimagine the future through it. He sees object historiography as a living discipline – one that invites us to make peace with our history, our land and ultimately, ourselves.
Kaya has previously curated acclaimed exhibitions such as the coin collections of the Darphane and “Letters from Captivity.” Now, with “The Memory of the Land,” he unveils the hidden richness of cadastral archives. These documents carry immense geopolitical significance, providing legal reference points for disputes and ownership claims far beyond Türkiye’s borders in the Balkans, the Middle East and Central Asia.
Among the collection are foundation records, tax registers and detailed cadastral maps that still hold legal and historical weight today. Some of these date back to the aftermath of the conquest of Constantinople, including documents issued under the authority of Sultan Mehmed II. These papers remind us that the story of land is never only local – it is also legal, spiritual and enduring.
To truly read the memory of the land, one must go beyond maps and registries. It means tracing the human stories behind them: the migrations, wars, temples, markets, foundations and communities that shaped geography into meaning. Kaya’s exhibition gives us the tools and context to do just that.
From coins to captivity letters, and now to cadastral records, these exhibitions form a powerful chain of remembrance. Thanks to Kaya’s work, the term “inventory” is no longer about dusty ledgers – it becomes a living, breathing archive of shared identity and memory.
In a world scarred by conflict, especially in regions where the earth itself carries the burden of memory, peace cannot be imagined without justice. And justice requires a deep, informed relationship with the land. That relationship begins with documents like these, and with the stories they tell.
With “The Memory of the Land,” Hasan Mert Kaya breathes new life into forgotten documents. And their silent voices whisper back to us: “The Future begins where the land remembers.”
Because if we can truly understand the past, we can look to the future with hope.
Courtesy: Dailysabah
