Western Asia
Discover Heydar Aliyev Centre, Maiden Tower, Baku, Möminə Xatun Mausoleum and more.
Explore 5 illustrated places, read the stories behind them and look closer on the globe.
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architecture
Zaha Hadid’s design gives this Baku cultural centre a continuous, sweeping form. The building opened in 2012 and contains spaces for exhibitions, performances and a museum. Its white surfaces rise from the surrounding plaza, curve around glazed openings and fold back towards the ground. Following those changing lines is a way to explore how a large public building can feel like one connected piece of architecture.
Source: Azerbaijan Tourism Board
architecture
The Maiden Tower is one of the most recognisable monuments within Baku’s walled city. Its cylindrical body is joined by a projecting rounded mass, giving it a distinctive outline from different sides. The tower belongs to a place shaped by many cultures over a long history. Questions about its earliest phases and purpose continue to invite discussion; the surviving stone form is a starting point for looking closely, rather than a reason to turn a legend into fact.
Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre
architecture
The Möminə Xatun mausoleum turns brickwork into a surface of repeated geometry. Built in the twelfth century and associated with architect Ajemi Nakhchivani, the ten-sided tower is a landmark of Nakhchivan’s architectural tradition. Long recessed panels lead the eye towards a turquoise band near the top. The monument commemorates Möminə Xatun, wife of Shamsaddin Eldeniz, and combines a strong overall shape with close, intricate craftsmanship.
Source: Azerbaijan Tourism Board
architecture
At the foot of the Greater Caucasus, Sheki's historic centre was rebuilt after eighteenth-century mudflows. Gabled houses and the Khan's Palace reflect a town connected to important trading routes. Silk production and the trade in cocoons helped create the wealth expressed in its buildings.
Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre
architecture
Ateshgah’s central pavilion gathers attention into a small open structure. It stands within a courtyard surrounded by cells, part of a complex associated with the meeting of Zoroastrian, Hindu and Sikh traditions on the Absheron Peninsula. The arches, roof and finial provide a recognisable centre to the temple. Looking from the pavilion towards the surrounding rooms helps reveal how the courtyard organised this place of worship and travel.
Source: Azerbaijan Tourism Board
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