Paper short abstract:

The site of Atatürk's mausoleum provides an interesting case for the monumentalisation of biographical memory enscribed into the national collective. The architectural and artistic formal language of the monument alludes to multiple references, from archaeology and topography to ideological subtexts.

Paper long abstract:

A mausoleum for a political leader provides the opportunity to monumentalise not only the last resting place into a substantial architectural or landscape object but to formulate biographical narratives that correlate with the real and imagined fate of the nation. Such memorials can become places of performative commemoration with strong emotive resonances as well as markers of national identities. Anitkabir, located in the centre of Ankara, capital city by Atatürk's decree since 1923, is built on an archaeological mound, containing several large tumuli dating from the Phrygian period (8th century BC).

The site of the ancient burial mound connects the distant past with the present Turkish Republic, here literally embodied by its founder's mortal remains. The architectural configuration of the memorial makes reference to various historical as well as ethnographic markers of identity. . Anitkabir is used by the government to mark important days associated with the Republic of Turkey for mass rallies. Foreign dignitaries are also expected to pay a visit but much more important are the personal visits of Turkish people who come alone or with families. Topographically, the Atatürk memorial, with its monumental columned hall constitutes a new 'acropolis' to complement the rocky plateau crowned by the citadel. .

Anitkabir, with its mausoleum, terraces, avenues and colonnades, set in an idealised landscape, can be seen as a monumental art work, a 'technology of enchantment' after A.Gell, which relies on symbolic representation to communicate complex and sometime contradictory messages to citizens and foreign visitors alike.