Last antiquarian in Van
VAN (DİHA) - 84-year-old Mehmet Nuri Ataklı, who has an antique shop in Van, where he sells the artefacts and old coins he has collected all his life, says sadly that the antique business is not what it was.
Mehmet Nuri Ataklı was born in the Malazgirt district of Muş province in 1930 and he has made a living selling antiques for 56 years. Ataklı bemoans the fact that people are no longer interested in the old paper money, coins and objects which he has accumulated over the years. Ataklı complains that people are no longer interested in collecting, adding that it needs patience.
He says collecting started out as a hobby for him, before becoming his profession. Amongst the objects he has collected are statuettes, bracelets, prayer beads, keys, wall hangings, kitchen utensils and vases. Some of the objects are hung on the walls, while others are piled high on shelves. Ataklı, who opened his shop in 1958, and has accumulated a century of history, says: "I have struggled to protect this profession and I will carry on until I die. A society that does not attach importance to historical objects will become detached from its history. The most important legacy I will leave to future generations is old things. Future generations will find out how we lived from these objects."
Ataklı added that these days prayer beads are the most popular items, saying: "people have hardly any interest in historical objects. Our profession is on the way out."
(nt)
