The architecture of Azerbaijan ( Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan memarlığı; اذربيجان ممرليغى) refers to the

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

development in

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. Architecture in Azerbaijan typically combines elements of East and West. Many medieval structures such as the Maiden Tower and Palace of the Shirvanshahs in the walled city of

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

survive in modern Azerbaijan. Among other medieval architectural treasures reflecting the influence of several schools are the Shirvan shahs' palace in Baku, the Palace of Shaki Khans in the town of Shaki in north-central Azerbaijan, the Surakhany Temple on the Apsheron Peninsula, a number of bridges spanning the

Aras River The Aras is a transboundary river in the Caucasus. It rises in eastern Turkey and flows along the borders between Turkey and Armenia, between Turkey and the Nakhchivan exclave of Azerbaijan, between Iran and both Azerbaijan and Armenia, and, fin ...

, and several mausoleums. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, little monumental architecture was created, but distinctive residences were built in Baku and elsewhere. Among the most recent architectural monuments, the Baku subways are noted for their lavish decor. The urban planning and architectural activities are regulated by the State Committee for City Building and Architecture of Azerbaijan Republic.

Palaces

File:Azerbaigian-baku3.jpg, Palace of the Shirvanshahs,

File:Shekikhan.JPG, Palace of Shaki Khans, Shaki File:Nakhchivan khan palace2.JPG, Palace of Nakhchivan Khans File:Bakı xan sarayına daxil olan binalardan birinin Bazar meydanına baxan fasadı.jpg, Baku Khans' Palace File:National Art Museum of Azerbaijan (de Burs House) edited.jpg,

Palace of De Boure Palace of De Boure is a palace built by order of Leo De Boure, one of the oil millionaires of Baku, Azerbaijan, Baku in the 19th century and the business manager for Baron Rothschild's company. The palace is located on Niyazi street (formerly Sad ...

File:Şuşa şəhəri20211213 161454.jpg, Masjidli Caravanserai

Mosques

Castles and fortresses

Skyscrapers and highrises

At the end of the 1990s the highrise buildings abundantly appeared in Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan and have, since then, continued to appear. File:Flame Towers (July 2012).jpg, Flame Towers File:Port Baku.jpg, Port Baku Towers File:The Ritz-Carlton Baku.jpg, Ritz-Carlton Baku Hotel File:Rail yard, Baku (P1090213).jpg, SOCAR Tower File:Crescent Development Project in 2024 3.jpg, Crescent Development project

20th-century architecture of Azerbaijan

The initial stage of architectural development in Azerbaijan during the Soviet era is related to the establishment of working settlements around Baku such as Binagadi, Rasulzade, Bakikhanov, Montin, and Mammadyarov. The general layout of the Greater Baku, one of the first major plans in the former USSR, also included construction of new regions. In addition to measures to solve the housing problem, transport communication has also been improved in the Absheron. The first graduate program of the Faculty of Construction in Polytechnical Institute of Azerbaijan was in 1929. The young architects S.Dadashov and M.Useynov designed and constructed the Bayil factory (a present-day maternity hospital), the new building of the Azerbaijan Industrial Institute (the present Azerbaijan State Academy of Oil and Industry) (1932), House of Fine Arts Workers, a number of residential buildings, and the Pedagogical Technical School in Gazakh (all in 1933). In the 1930s, a new stage in Azerbaijani architecture began. The construction of Governmental House of Baku was started in 1934, but the beginning of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

ceased the construction operation. After the War in 1945, the construction of the unfinished building began anew, with completion in 1952. The Nizami Theatre and the former building of the Ministry of Food Industry of the Republic of Azerbaijan (both during 1937–1939), which were constructed on the bases of Dadashov and Useinov's projects, were different from other buildings due to their volume-space structure and architectural solutions. At the end of the 1930s, many school buildings were built in the country; in addition, the general layouts of Yevlakh, Khankendi and Sheki cities were started. The

National Library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public library, public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, ...

named after M. F. Axundov, was built in 1961 in a synthesis of modern and classical styles. The project of this library was provided by Mikhail Huseynov, known as the largest library building in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. Yusif ibn Kuseyr and Momina Khatun mausoleums created by Ajami Nakhchivani, whose 850th anniversary was celebrated in 1976, were rescued from destruction and reconstructed. The Presidential Palace was built on the basis of a project built under design Fuad Orujov (project manager), Tahir Allahverdiyev (architect) and Madat Khalafov (designer) between 1977 and 1986. The palace is a twelve-storey building with façades of marble and granite. Different decisions and events, related to problems of protection of historically Azerbaijani towns and all town-building systems, have been carried out. Shaki (1968), Icharishahar in

Shusha Shusha (, ) or Shushi () is a city in Azerbaijan, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Situated at an altitude of 1,400–1,800 metres (4,600–5,900 ft) in the Karabakh mountains, the city was a mountain resort in the Soviet Union, Soviet ...

and Ordubad (all in 1977), Lahidj settlement (1980), Nardaran village (1992), Shabran town, Davachi region (2002), Ilisu village, Qakh region (2002), Arpachay bank,

Ordubad Ordubad is the second largest city of Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic and the capital of an eponymous district. Ordubad is a medieval city of the Caucasus and in its current capacity of a town was founded in the 18th century. The town ...

region (2002), Chiraggala tower, Davachi region (2002), Kish village, Shaki region (2003), Pir Huseyn khanagah (abode), and Hadjigabul region (2004) were announced as historical reserves of the architecture of Azerbaijan.

21st-century architecture of Azerbaijan

Flame Towers

has long been called The Land of Fire. For this reason, many flame figures are being used in this country. The Flame Towers architecture is the most prominent representative of flame figures in Azerbaijan. The flame-shaped structure is equipped with LED screens. It is the tallest building in the country with height of 182 m. The total area of the building is 235,000 square meters. The Flame Towers consist of three buildings, including hotel, apartments, and offices. The building's construction began in 2007, with completion in 2012. In 2013, it was awarded the "best hotel and tourist center" grant by MIPIM. Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center

Haydar Aliyev Culture Center

One of the most important and visible example of new architecture in Azerbaijan is Haydar Aliyev Center. The Haydar Aliyev Cultural Center includes the history of rise of the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

in the Azerbaijani mythology. Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid was appointed as an ''architectural designer'' of the Haydar Aliyev Center in 2007. The center is considered to be one of the symbols of modern Baku. The area of the complex is 15.93 hectares. The straight line has not been used in the project. The lines of the building symbolize the merging of the past with the future. Center aims breaking from the monumental Soviet architecture which is quite common in Baku and to express the sensibilities of Azeri culture and the optimism of a nation that looks to the future.

Baku Crystal Hall

The Baku Crystal Hall is sport-entertainment complex, which was built to host the Eurovision 2012 in Baku. On August 2, 2011, it was announced that main agreement was signed with the German construction company named ‘’Alpine Bau Deutschland AG’’ and necessary preparation had begun. Arena construction was completed on 16 April 2012. The capacity of this hall is 25,000 spectators and VIP rooms in the arena. The magnificent lighting system used in the Baku Crystal Hall consists of over 2,500 projectors and more than 3,000 meters of cable which were brought from

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Light-emitting diodes with an area of more than 1,300 m are placed in the form of electronic windows on the scene of the Baku Crystal Hall.

Baku Olympic Stadium

The construction of the stadium has started on June 6, 2011 with the participation of President

Ilham Aliyev Ilham Heydar Oghlu Aliyev (born 24 December 1961) is an Azerbaijani politician who has been the fourth president of Azerbaijan since 2003. He is also the leader of the New Azerbaijan Party since 2005. The son and second child of former Aze ...

, former

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

and

UEFA The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...

presidents –

Sepp Blatter Joseph Sepp Blatter (born Josef Blatter; 10 March 1936) is a Swiss former association football, football administrator who served as the list of Presidents of FIFA, eighth president of FIFA from 1998 to 2015. He has been banned from participatin ...

and

Michel Platini Michel François Platini (; born 21 June 1955) is a French association football, football Administrator (business), administrator and former player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'O ...

respectively. The opening ceremony of Baku Olympic Stadium was held on March 6, 2015 and stadium is considered to hold major sport events in Azerbaijan. This multifunctional stadium is the largest stadium in Azerbaijan with total capacity of 68,700 seats for spectators. The Baku Olympic Stadium is chosen to be the 7th best stadium in the world by StadiumDB. The construction of the stadium was given to TEKFEN which is the Turkish company with Design &Build contracts. Several hotels, parking spaces (total 3,617 car places) and green space (81,574 square meters) has been created in the area around the stadium. Baku Olympic Stadium is consisting of VVIP, VIP – CIP Suites total 127 each with 720 spectator's capacity, 1,800 Seating Capacity Warm Up Area, MEP Building, Info Centre and Two External Buildings.

National Gymnastics Arena

The National Gymnastics Arena, designed for 9,000 people, is located close to the Koroghlu metro station on the Heydar Aliyev highway. The number of seats can be altered from 5,000 to 9,000 seats depending on the capacity and nature of the competition. The Arena has 2 stages, VIP category for serving sponsors on each floor, resting rooms, and a dining room.

Gallery

File:Qız qalası 2013.JPG, Maiden Tower in

File:Palace of Shirvanshahs common.JPG, The Palace of the Shirvanshahs File:Mardakanbashnya2.JPG, Quadrangular castle of Mardakan File:Ասկերանի մայրաբերդ17.JPG, Askeran Fortress File:Momina Khatun Tomb.jpg, Momine Khatun Mausoleum File:Shaki khan palace 1.jpg, Palace of Shaki Khans File:Nakhchivan khan palace7.JPG, Palace of Nakhchivan Khans File:Gandzasar (Vanq) Church.JPG, Gandzasar monastery in Kalbajar File:Дадиванк.jpg, Dadivank monastery File:Bakirə Məryəmin Məsum Hamilələyi kilsəsi (Bakı, pravoslav).jpg, Orthodox Church of Saint Michael Archangel in Baku File:Baku, Russian-Orthodox Holy Myrrhbearers Cathedral.jpg, Orthodox Holy Myrrhbearers Cathedral File:2014 Szuszi, Katedra Chrystusa Zbawiciela (01).jpg, Ghazanchetsots Cathedral in

File:Barda Mosque 004 6836z.jpg, Imamzadeh Mausoleum (Barda) File:Church in Baku.jpg,

Church of the Immaculate Conception, Baku The Church of the Virgin Mary's Immaculate Conception (; ) is a Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic church in Baku, Azerbaijan. The original church, also named Church of the Immaculate Conception, Baku (1912), Church of the Immaculate Concep ...

File:Church of Saviour in Baku.jpg,

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Church of the Saviour, Baku File:Qoşa minarəli məscid. Şamaxı şəhəri.JPG, Juma Mosque, Shamakhi File:Muhammad Mosque (Baku) 1.JPG, Muhammad Mosque File:Azerbaijan Monument.jpg, Taza Pir Mosque File:Mosque of the Martyrs.jpg, Mosque of the Martyrs File:Потолок-купол.jpg,

Dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

of the Bibi-Heybat Mosque File:Heydər məscidinin uzaqdan görünüşü.JPG, Heydar Mosque File:Hacı sultanəli məscidi.jpg, Haji Sultanali Mosque File:National Art Museum of Azerbaijan (de Burs House) edited.jpg, National Art Museum of Azerbaijan (De Bur's Palace) File:Ismailiyye palace main façade, Baku, 2015.jpg, Ismailiyya Palace in Baku File:Mirtağı Babayevin sarayı axşam vaxtı.JPG, Palace of Seyid Mirbabayev in Baku File:Government House in Baku.jpg, Government House in Neftchilar Avenue, Baku. File:FilarmonaSide.JPG, Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall File:Mayoralty of Baku main façade, 2015.jpg, Mayoralty of Baku File:Səadət sarayı ümumi görünüş.jpg, Palace of Happiness File:Baku Aquatic Palace, view.jpg, Baku Aquatics Centre File:Baku Crystal Hall 2014 1.jpg, Baku Crystal Hall File:Absheron Baku Hotel.jpg, JW Marriott Absheron Baku Hotel File:Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center.jpg, Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center File:Port Baku.jpg, Port Baku Towers and Port Baku Residence File:Bibi Heybat Mosque Baku 1.jpg, Bibi-Heybat Mosque File:Müqəddəs İohann kilsəsi (Göygöl) (13).jpg, St. John's Church File:Ganja ImamzadeComplex 004 4664.jpg, Imamzadeh Complex (Ganja) File:Aghdam Juma Mosque after restoration 03.jpg, Agdam Mosque

References

Seyran Valiyev and Fuad Akhundov both contributed to this article. The book "Baku" by Leonid Bretanskiy was also referenced (Iskusstvo (Art) Publishing House: Leningrad, Moscow, 1970). {{DEFAULTSORT:Architecture Of Azerbaijan