İstanbul Toy Museum

Istanbul Toy Museum

The Istanbul Toy Museum was founded on 23 April 2005 by Belgin Akın and poet–writer Sunay Akın. Showcasing some of the most outstanding examples of toy history from the 18th century to the present, the museum is housed in a historic mansion.

Established with toys collected by Sunay Akın over a period of 20 years from antique dealers and auctions in more than 40 countries, the Istanbul Toy Museum presents world history to its visitors through a more entertaining and memorable learning experience. For instance, the struggle to reach the Moon is narrated through toys in the space-themed section, while the Industrial Revolution is conveyed through model trains and railway toys. Reflecting this narrative approach, the museum’s interior design was created by stage designer Ayhan Doğan.
The museum is unique worldwide in that it was founded by a poet and designed by a stage design artist, making it a pioneering institution in both concept and presentation.

One of the most distinctive features of the Istanbul Toy Museum is its ability to embrace the entire family. It is a space where three generations can spend time together and share a collective sense of joy. As grandparents, parents, and children embark on a journey back to their own childhoods—almost like traveling through a time machine—they delight in sharing memories from their respective eras. The museum corridors often resonate with voices saying, “I had one of those too!”, as childhood memories are joyfully recalled.

With the establishment of the Istanbul Toy Museum, a significant gap in Türkiye—especially when compared to the long-standing importance of toy museums in Europe—was filled. The museum has since gained a prominent place among similar institutions worldwide. In November 2012, the Istanbul Toy Museum hosted TOYCO-2012 Istanbul, a world-first gathering of the European Toy and Children’s Museums Association, held in Türkiye for the first time. Through this event, the museum played a pioneering role in the formation of an international network of toy and children’s museums and helped Istanbul earn the title of “the capital of toy museums.”

The Istanbul Toy Museum has also served as a model for the establishment of other toy museums across Türkiye. Under the consultancy and curatorship of Sunay Akın, the museum’s founder, several institutions have opened their doors to visitors, including the Antalya Toy Museum (2011), Gaziantep Game and Toy Museum (2013), Düştepe Play Museum in Ataşehir (2015), Kartal Fairy Tale Museum (2017), and the Canik Toy Museum in Samsun.