Hitit Güneş Kursu Anıtı

The bronze sun disc rising in the middle of the Sıhhiye junction is Ankara's most reproduced symbol. The work of the sculptor Nusret Suman, it was erected in 1978. The monument is an enlarged copy of a Hatti ceremonial object found in the excavations at Alacahöyük; the originals are in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. The sun disc became the city's symbol in 1973 by decision of Mayor Vedat Dalokay, and the monument was presented to the people of Ankara by Anadolu Sigorta in 1977; between 1977 and 1995 it also appeared in the municipality's logo. About four metres high, it was restored in 2001 and 2022. The deer figures inside the disc read best from the far pavement, against the sky. The monument stands amid traffic; use the underpasses to approach it. It sits above the M1 Sıhhiye station.