Icherisheher
The old town inside Baku's fortress walls — its lanes, baths and caravanserais.
icherisheher.tut.az
Monument
Maiden Tower
Baku's emblem: an eight-tier stone cylinder and the questions nobody has settled.
Go to the siteqiz-qalasi.tut.azA separate third-level domain with its own design
in progress
How it will look: each site gets its own colour scheme and structure.
In brief
The Maiden Tower stands on the seaward side of Icherisheher. Its walls are up to five metres thick at the base and eight tiers rise inside; with every step the city opens up below.
When and why it was built is still argued over: a fortification, a temple, an observatory. That very uncertainty makes it the most discussed monument in Baku.
On the site
- 01TheoriesTemple, fortress, observatory — arguments side by side
- 02ArchitectureSection, tiers, the well and the flue
- 03LegendsWhere the name comes from and why the legends multiplied
- 04In picturesEngravings, postcards, banknotes
Related sites
Shirvanshahs' Palace
A 15th-century palace complex: divankhana, mosque, bathhouse and the rulers' tomb.
shirvanshahlar.tut.az
Baku Boulevard
The seafront where Baku has been unwinding since 1909 — now a park tens of kilometres long.
bulvar.tut.az