Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah's Palace and Maiden Tower Azerbaijan

Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah's Palace and Maiden Tower - Azerbaijan

Short Report

Built on the site since the Paleolithic period, the walled city Baku, documentation of pre-Islamic Zoroastrian, Sasanian, Arabic, Persian, Shirvani, Ottoman, and Russian presence in cultural continuity. The inner city (Icheri Sheher-) has preserved much of its defensive walls from the 12th century. The 12th century Maiden Tower (Giz Galasy) is built over earlier structures dating from structures from the 7th and 6th century such Kr., and the 15th-century Shirvanshahs' Palace is one of the pearls of architecture.

Wide Report

Built on the site since the Paleolithic period, the walled city Baku, documentation of pre-Islamic Zoroastrian, Achaemenid, Sassanian,, Arabic, Persian, Shirvani Ottoman and Russian presence in cultural continuity. The inner city (Icheri Sheher-) has preserved much of its defensive walls from the 12th century. The 12th century Maiden Tower (Giz Galasy) is built over earlier structures dating from structures from the 7th and 6th century such Kr., and from the 15th century-century Shirvanshahs''s is one of the pearls of architecture.

The inner city is one of the few preserved medieval towns in Azerbaijan. It retains the characteristics of a medieval town, for example, a maze of narrow streets, congested buildings and small courtyards. The walls of the old town, which still survive on the western and northern sides, was built by Menutsshochr Shah in the 12th century and was repaired in the 19th century. The narrow streets are lined with houses dating from the late 18th century onwards, but also contains earlier monuments, mainly concentrated in the lower, seaward, side of the town.

The first tower is located in the south-eastern part of Icheri Sheher-; this unique monument in Azerbaijan architecture was built in two periods. It is a stunning cylindrical structure, increases to 8 floors. Each floor is covered by a small box with a central opening. The three lower floors are assumed to as early as the 7th or 6th century F. Kr and have been an astronomical observatory or fire-temple. Evidence for this comes from a shaft that can be seen on the back of niches in the second and third floors. This seems to have been designed to channel natural gas to fuel the eternal flame. The largest part of the tower, circular in plan, but with a long, solid projection in the east and is pointing toward sunrise on equinoxes. The floors are connected with stairs built into the walls, and is clarified by means of narrow windows.

The-century Shirvanshahs''s Palace was built in the 15th century, where Shamaha finally was abandoned as the capital of Baku. Construction work continued under the prevailing over-century Shirvanshahs' Khalilulla IN and his son Faruk, until it was killed in battle in 1501. The castle was seriously damaged by a Russian naval bombardment in the 18th century and many of the top parts were destroyed. Restoration work was carried out in 18th, 20th centuries. Treasures from the palace, originally taken to Tabriz, was later transferred to booty to Topkapi palace in Istanbul. The complex consists of several distinct components: Residential, Divankhane,-century Shirvanshahs' Palace Mausoleum, the palace mosque with its minaret, baths (hammam), the Mausoleum of the Court astrologers Seyid his Bakuvi, a little later Eastern Gate and mosque Key-Gubad . The castle is built on the highest point of one of the trays in Icheri Sheher-. Stretching over three superimposed terraces, it is clearly visible from the sea and from heights around the city.

The tsarist city lies outside the Inner Walled City but constitutes a buffer zone protecting the setting of the latter. During the last two decades of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century, Baku was one of the major centres of oil production in the world. This generated substantial wealth, as can be seen by the high quality of the buildings dating from this period.  The most important conservation problem with these concerns balconies, which was formed by stone slabs supported by sultry iron girders. Degradation of stone and rust on ironwork has led many of them to be replaced with concrete, usually with the simultaneous decline in their support stone consoles.

Historical Data

Baku is located in Shirvan, which existed from the 9th century CE until 1538, when it was annexd by Safavid Iran. In 1585 the town was occupied by the Ottoman Sultan Murat III, and in 1723 it was occupied by the Russian General Matushkin, when it was destroyed by fire. It was a part of the Russian Empire in 1783.

The inner city (Icheri Sheher-) the inner city, as forms of ownership to the inscription on the World Heritage List, is one of the few preserved medieval towns in Azerbaijan. It retains the characteristics of a medieval town, for example, a maze of narrow streets, congested buildings and small courtyards.

The walls of the old town, which still survive on the western and northern sides, was built by Menutsshochr Shah in the 12th century and was repaired in the 19th century. The narrow streets are lined with houses dating from the late 18th century onwards, but also contains earlier monuments, mainly concentrated in the lower, seaward, place in the city. These include Mehmet Masjid in 1078-79, two single-cell medresses in the 12th century, the 15th century Haji Gaib Turkish, south of there are two 17th Century inhabited since fire temples, larger with a farm cut off from the modern road. Next to these are 16th- 17th Century two greenhouses for several floors Kasumbek Caravanserai for merchants come by sea, and nearby is the 17th century Kasumbek Mosque. Further to the east is the 14. -15. century Multani Caravanserai, which is used by Indian merchants, and it returns to the 15th century the land of Bukhara caravanserai, built for traders from Central Asia, behind which is a small left 17th century bath.

The first tower (over earlier structures dating from Giz Galasy) located in the south-eastern part of Icheri Sheher-, this unique monument in Azerbaijan architecture was built in two periods. It is a stunning cylindrical structure, rising to 8 storeys and 29.5 meters high, with a diameter of 16.5 m. Each floor is covered with a small box with a central opening. The walls are 5 m thick at the bottom and 3.2-4m on top. The three lower floors are assumed to as early as the 7th or 6th century F. Kr and have been an astronomical observatory or fire-temple. Evidence of this comes from a shaft, which can be seen on the back of niches in the second and third floors, as it is found extends 15m below the surface. This seems to have been designed to channel natural gas to fuel the eternal flame.

The largest part of the tower, circular in plan, but with a long, solid projection in the east and is pointing toward sunrise on equinoxes. The floors are connected with stairs built in the walls, and is clarified by means of narrow windows. The upper part of the tower dates from the 12th century and contains a Kufic inscription of Kubey Mesud ibn Da'out and celebrate a reconstruction in the 12th century. Stonework is quite different from the original, as alternative courses of stone were recessed to take plaster plaster, to give a black-and-white striped. Some of the original plaster survives on more protected north-west side. In addition masonry at the end of the beak-projection is curved, while in the earliest masonry, it is built, square corners. In the upper, medieval, part of the tower there is a staircase from the floor built in wall thickness in the area of projection.

The-century Shirvanshahs' palace from the castle was built in the 15th century, where Shamaha abandoned as the capital of Baku. Construction work continued under the prevailing over-century Shirvanshahs' Khalilulla IN and his son Faruk, until it was killed in battle in 1501. The castle was seriously damaged by a Russian naval bombardment in the 18th century and many of the top parts were destroyed. Restoration work was carried out in 18th, 20th centuries. Treasures from the palace, originally taken to Tabriz, was later transferred to booty to Topkapi palace in Istanbul.

The complex consists of several distinct components: Residential, Divankhane,-century Shirvanshahs' Palace mausoleum, the Palace mosque with its minaret, baths (hammam), the Mausoleum of the Court astrologers Seyid his Bakuvi, a little later Eastern Gate, and the Mosque of Key-Gubad . The castle is built on the highest point of one of the trays in Icheri Sheher-. Stretching over three superimposed terraces, it is clearly visible from the sea and from heights around the city. Registration is in an open courtyard at the top level, which provides access to both Divankhane and the private part of the castle.

The Divankhane, state meetings and receptions, consists of a square courtyard, arcaded on three sides of the octagonal building of Divankhane even occupy center. The western facade rotunda is embellished with the magnificent portal. The Ruler sat at a high level, below which a basement cell with a coherent grid in the floor. Some of carving in capitals in the arcade on the outside of the building was never completed, possibly because of Faruk's death in 1501. The building is covered with a stone dome.

The two-storey housing part of the palace is entered through a large portal to an octagonal, domed, hall, previously faced with ceramic tiles. The small octagonal hall in addition to the linking it to other parts of the castle: four inputs to different rooms and two staircases. The seats in niches of Set Octahedral hall was designed for communication with ground floor. The southern and eastern halls are different in form and decoration from ceremonial halls and rooms on the first floor.

This part of the palace is much less extensive, as a result of the Russian bombing, which destroyed both domes, which were previously the subject of rooms, and the upper parts of the walls. The rooms are different views of the Caspian Sea. Good stone carving is carried out in order to replace the missing elements, but it has not been possible to reproduce the fine drill 15th century work. The interior surfaces of walls in the dining room at the Castle has been faced with new stone supported by reinforced concrete pillars. (It has already been appreciated the fact that the introduction of non-alloy steel in a historic structure is unwise and these columns to be removed.) The bottom shops in the domestic part of the castle open on a garden.

This garden contains the mausoleum Seyid his Bakuvi, a court astrologers, which was originally registered through a rectangular mosque, only if basis now survive. The Grave is a two-story vaulted structure. Stored in the garden are part of a high inscription; these were recovered from the sea and was originally a part of the wall in the 12th century island Sabail fortress, which was destroyed by an earthquake in the 13th century. The central courtyard palace, at a lower level, contains-century Shirvanshahs' Palace mausoleum, built in 1434-35 by Shah Khalilulla i for his mother and sons. It is square in plan and is covered by a hexagonal dome decorated dining rooms with multiradial stars. When excavated in 1945-46, the Mausoleum was found to contain seven burials, accompanied by a rich tomb, now in the historical museum in Azerbaijan.

Perpendicular is the castle mosque in 1441, the dome is simple plaster work in the 19th century. There are two prayer halls, together with some subsidiary rooms. There are three inputs to the mosque, the largest (northern) a portal on both sides as there are semicircular niches for shoes. As a variety of other locations on the castle, water ingress through stone roof of the mosque is a cause for concern. The lowest part of the castle are the ruins of the castle bath-house, discovered in 1939 during excavations in a vineyard. The plan consists of two large rectangular structure split into smaller companies in four columns, with a separate oven building for the production of steam in recessed channels to the bath. Parts of the original tiles survive in some of the rooms.

The eastern Portal for-century Shirvanshahs' palace was built later than the other parts of the complex, in the 16th century. The upper part is decorated with the design the inscription in Arabic refers to the building (1585-86) and the name of the Shah which ordered it to be built up. The inscription has rosettes with plant ornaments on both sides.

The Tsarist period city in the Buffer Zone. This lies outside the Inner Walled City, nominated for World Heritage inscription, but constitutes a buffer zone protecting the setting of the latter. In the course of the last two decades of the 19th century and the first two decades of the twentieth century, Baku was one of the major centers of oil production in the world. This generated considerable wealth, which can be seen from the high quality of buildings from this period. The most important conservation problem with these concerns balconies, which was formed by stone slabs supported by sultry iron girders. Degradation of stone and rust on ironwork has led many of them to be replaced with concrete, usually with the simultaneous decline in their support stone consoles.

Source:whc/unesco