The Women's Costume of the Late Ottoman Era exhibition will be held on 7 May – 28 December 2010 to mark the 30th anniversary of the Vehbi Koç Foundation's Sadberk Hanım Museum.

The exhibition consists of 81 women's costumes and 13 pairs of shoes dating from the 18th to the early 20th century, all from the museum's own outstanding collection.

Costumes worn indoors by Ottoman women during this period are represented by various types of robes, such as the üçetek entari, iki etek entari, and bindallı entari, matching şalvar and cepken outfits, pirpiri kaftans from the Balkans, and a number of bridal costumes, including both traditional and European style examples. The exhibition focuses on the growing influence of European fashions on traditional women's clothing, and the spread of this influence from the capital Istanbul to the provinces. The exhibition also includes costume albums dating from the Ottoman era.

Vehbi Koç’s wife Sadberk Koç was a woman who treasured tradition and was interested in antiques and fine arts. At a young age she began to collect embroideries, articles of dress and other Turkish handcrafts, and in time created a large collection. Textiles were her special love, and the care she lavished on their conservation ensured that they survived in excellent condition. Sadberk Hanım's interest in antiques was inherited by her daughter Sevgi Gönül, who went on to shoulder responsibility for the museum. She enlarged her mother's collection and was dedicated to conserving it in immaculate condition for future generations. Since Sevgi Gönül's death the museum's trustees have continued to enlarge the collection in the same spirit of dedication.

Sadberk Hanım Museum's collection of Ottoman women's costumes is one of the finest in Turkey, attracting the attention of researchers from around the world, as well as the general public. The original collection made by Sadberk Koç forms the nucleus of the present collection, which comprises more than 1200 pieces spanning the 18th to 20th centuries.