The Çatalhöyük Research Trust
| Patrons: Professor Lord Renfrew Sir David Attenborough |
| Directors of the Çatalhöyük Trust Chairman: Sir Mark Russell Dr John Curtis Lady Daunt Professor Nicholas Postgate Dr Andrew Sherratt Mr George Warren Dr Trevor Watkins An appointee of the British Institute of Archaeology ar Ankara An appointee of the Director General of Monuments and Antiquities, Ankara |
The Çatalhöyük Research Trust has been set up as a Company Limited by Guarantee without a share capital. It has charitable status.
The purpose of the Trust is to advance the education of the public in archaeology through the investigation of the archaeological site at Çatalhöyük and its environs in the Konya region of Turkey
The Research Trust manages the three parts of the project.
- (1) Field research, involving primarily excavation but including environmental reconstruction and regional survey. The main teams are from Cambridge, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Loughborough in Britain and from Berkeley, California. In Turkey, students and staff are involved from the Universities of Ankara, Istanbul, METU and Bilkent. The overall aim is to apply the latest scientific analysis (eg GIS, DNA analysis, database management, residue analysis) to the archaeological material in the field and in the laboratory.
- (2) Conservation and restoration. The Directors of the conservation and restoration are Dr Frank Matero, Director of the Architectural Conservation Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania and Constance Silver, Preservar Inc., New York. The overall aims are to conduct research into methods of conserving, displaying and restoring wall paintings and sculptures and other materials, using the latest scientific techniques and knowledge, and to treat and restore the paintings, and to monitor their condition over time.
- (3) Heritage management. The Conservation Practice, London coordinates with a team from the Science Museum, Minneapolis (headed by Orrin Shane) to develop the site for tourism, including roofing of parts of the site, the construction of a visitor centre and museum, the provision of pathways, parking, shops etc. The overall aim is to realise the potential of the site as an attractive and informative place to visit.