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Wolfgang Müller-Wiener

Wolfgang Müller-Wiener was a German architecture historian, archaeologist, and Byzantinist born on May 17, 1923, in Friedrichswerth, Thuringia. He passed away on March 25, 1991, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Müller-Wiener's academic career began after completing his apprenticeship as a carpenter. He studied architecture from 1948 to 1951 at the Technical University of Karlsruhe and completed his doctorate in 1954 on the topic of development of industrial construction in Baden. From 1962 to 1967, he was second director of the German Archaeological Institute in Cairo and led the excavations of Abu Mena near Alexandria.

In 1976, Müller-Wiener became the first director of the German Archaeological Institute's Istanbul Department, a position he held until his retirement in 1988. During this time, he oversaw excavations at Miletus, where he examined three Hellenistic temples and Heroa with Berthold Weber and early Christian buildings.

Müller-Wiener was also an accomplished researcher on medieval fortifications in southern Ionia. His work includes the publication of "Medieval Fortifications in Southern Ionia" (1961) and "The Fortifications of Izmir, Sigacik, and Çandarli: Remarks on the Medieval Topography of Northern Ionia" (1962). He also wrote extensively on Crusader castles in the Holy Land, Cyprus, and the Aegean.

In addition to his research, Müller-Wiener was a prolific writer. His notable works include "Lexicon on Topography of Istanbul: Byzantion, Constantinople, Istanbul until the Beginning of the 17th Century" (1977), "From the Polis to the Kastron" (1986), and "Greek Construction in Antiquity" (1988). The guest wing of the German Archaeological Institute's Istanbul Department was named after him in his honor.

Müller-Wiener's contributions to the field of Byzantinist studies have had a lasting impact on our understanding of medieval fortifications, Crusader castles, and Greek construction techniques. His work continues to be studied by scholars today, and he remains an important figure in the history of German archaeology and architecture.