Palace of the Shirvanshahs
| Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah's Palace and Maiden Tower | |
|---|---|
| Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List | |
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| Location | Azerbaijan |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | iv |
| Reference | 958 |
| UNESCO region | Europe |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 2000 (24th Session) |
| Endangered | 2003-2009 |
The Palace of the Shirvanshahs (Azerbaijani: Şirvanşahlar Sarayı, Persian: کاخ شروانشاهان) is a 15th-century palace built by the Shirvanshahs and described by UNESCO as "one of the pearls of Azerbaijan's architecture". It is located in the Inner City of Baku, Azerbaijan and, together with the Maiden Tower, forms an ensemble of historic monuments inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage List of Historical Monuments. The complex contains the main building of the palace, Divanhane, the burial-vaults, the shah's mosque with a minaret, Seyid Yahya Bakuvi's mausoleum, a portal in the east, Murad's gate, a reservoir and the remnants of a bath house.
The palace is depicted on the obverse of the Azerbaijani 10,000 manat banknote of 1994-2006 and of the 10 new manat banknote issued since 2006.
In the 15th century the Shirvanshah dynasty, under Ibrahim I of Shirvan, transferred his capital from Shemakha to Baku following a devastating earthquake. He committed himself to the construction of the "palace". The building is believed to be a memorial complex built around the sacred place of worship (pir) and tomb of Seyyid Yaxya Bakuvi who was a Helwati Sufi saint. The Shirvanshahs were patrons of the Helwati Sufiye order, and Shirvanshah Khalilullah I was buried with his family in the grounds of the palace. Other historians argue that the building was used as the ruler's palace. Both theories suffer from the absence of evidence. It is known that wells inside the grounds of the "palace" were considered to have healing qualities until recent times, as was the hill where the palace was built.
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