The first efforts to establish a museum in our county started in 1962. After the 1957 earthquake in particular during the reconstruction works of the city, some movable artifacts unearthed in the foundations began to be exhibited as an open-air museum in and around the current harbor. The works that were exhibited only visually in this way under the control of the Ministry of National Education were gathered in a few rooms on the ground floor of the Mayorship building as a result of the formation of the Ministry of Culture and the museums were attached to this ministry and gained a scientific position under the name of the Museum Office.
As a result of the increase in the number of works acquired in various ways in Fethiye and its surroundings, the construction of the museum building we are now in started in 1982 and was completed and opened to visit in 1987. It is aimed to exhibit the artifacts gained from the excavations in the areas within the control areas of the museum through purchasing and restraint (forced) in a modern environment. The exhibition halls and the garden were renewed and opened to visitors again. Most of the works exhibited are ceramic works. The works in the hall follow a chronological order. In our museum, where there are works covering the period from 3000 B.C to the Ottoman period, it is possible to see artifacts unique to the Lycian region, such as the Trilingual Inscription (Lycian-Greek-Aramaic), Izraza Monument, Bilingual Inscription (Carian-Greek) and the offerings dedicated to the god-hero Kakasbos.
