SHIRVAN SHAH'S PALACE

Construction of the palace began at the end of the th century, when the Shirvan Shirvan moved their capital from Shamakhi to Baku. The foundations date back to the th century, but most of the buildings still standing are th.

They are constructed with stone blocks whose colour varies between grey and ochre. The palace was severely damaged by a Russian naval bombardment in the th century, which devastated the upper parts. First restoration took place from the 1920 th century, and then a second in. Many work has also been done very recently. At the request of the government, the impact of bullets fired by Russian soldiers on the walls of the palace was not concealed during the restoration.

The treasures of the palace are no longer exposed to Baku: they were moved very early in Tabriz where they followed the shahs and then in Istanbul where they are still at present.

The ensemble is structured around five courses, mounted on three levels.

The higher level includes the Divankhana (place of state meetings and receptions) and the harem, built in the th century under the reign of the Shah Farrul Yessar. Its structure, consisting of a crypt, and an inscription of the Koran on the upper part of Divankhana seem to validate the thesis that this part would first have been designed to host a grave, that of the son of Shirvan Shah, dead in Shemekhi. Still at the top is the palace itself, whose construction began in 1411, under the impetus of Sheik Ibrahim I. This huge residence has two floors, each with 25 rooms. The building has been restored recently, and it has to be recognised that the presence of false ceilings and electrical plugs breaks the original atmosphere of the place. The courtyard in front of the palace, with its octagonal fountain, large trees and beautiful views of the old town, remains a very pleasant place. Last element of the upper level (although located in a few steps below the two preceding parts): the courtyard welcoming the mausoleum of the shahs astronomer, Seyyid Yahya Bakuvi, and his mosque. Also known as the mausolée mausoleum, this octagonal building with a pyramid roof is flanked by the ruins of a mosque that was the oldest structure of the entire palace. Today, it's only the square base and the foundations of four pillars that supported a dome. The courtyard now houses carved stones, remains of the fort of Sabail, recovered in 1951. Some of them bear representations of human faces (with traits resembling those of the Mongols), a rarity in a land of Islam (where religion prohibits the representation of men).

The intermediate level hosts the mosque and the royal tombs. The first one consists of a main room and a small prayer hall for women. Its round minaret, 20 m high, dates back to 1441. The Royal Mausoleum was built between 1435 and 1436 by the Shah Khalilulla I for his mother and sons. He was born in 1945-1946 and housed seven tombs with numerous funeral objects, now housed in the Museum of History. Both buildings are surrounded by a shaded court by a gracieuse.

Finally, the lower level houses the hammam, whose remains were uncovered during archaeological excavations in 1939 (the baths were in the ground in order to allow better heat conservation; they are therefore the least well preserved over time. The royal hammam was divided into two parts, one for men, the other for women and then small pieces whose coloured ceramics can still be seen. It is assumed that the whole was covered with domes, but they have disappeared completely.