Shirvan-Absheron architectural school

The Maiden’s tower and the Shirvanshahs palace in Baku are examples of the Shirvan-Absheron architectural school

Shirvan- Absheron architectural school ( azerb. Şirvan-Abşeron memarlıq məktəbi ) is one of the architectural schools common in the Middle Ages in the territory of modern Azerbaijan , in historical Shirvan . It was born around the 8th - 9th centuries. It experienced a flourishing in the XI - XV centuries. ^[one]

The school combined the features of the style of architects who worked on the territory of the Shirvanshahs. For the Shirvan-Absheron school, the contrast of the smooth surface of stone walls with the plastic of sparingly used architectural elements is traditional ^[2] . One of the features of the Shirvan-Absheron architectural school is the consistent heaving and lightness of the heavy architectural forms of defensive structures. An important part of this process is reflected in the minaret of the Mohammed Mosque in Baku ( 1078 ). This monument reflected both the severity of the material characteristic of defensive structures and the processing of such parts as kitabe ^[1] .

Valuable architectural monuments of the Shirvan-Absheron school in Shemakha have not survived to this day. In Baku and its suburbs, in Derbent , in the village of Khazra, Gabala region , in the city of Gobustan , buildings built in the 12th - 15th centuries have been preserved. and reflecting the artistic and architectural qualities. Among the monuments of the Shirvan-Absheron architectural school, one can name the complex of the Shirvanshahs palace in Baku, the Sabail castle , the Maiden’s tower , the Diri Baba Mausoleum in the city of Gobustan. On some monuments of the Shirvan-Absheron architectural school the pseudonyms of architects ("Shamakhi", "Shamaki", "Shirvani") are imprinted ^[1] .