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Photo: Rəcəb Yaxşı, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
This was built in 1187. The rectangular fortress is 22 m high. Its 76-step tower has two drinking water and 60 food wells. There is a circular tower 500 m away, is known as a "round fortress". It is also called the "Six fortress" after Sheikh Abu Said Abulkheir. It is 12 m high. The Arabic inscriptions on it suggest that it was built by architect Abdulmajid Masud in 1232.
The Quadrangular Mardakan Fortress or the Great Mardakan Castle is a historical and architectural monument located in the Mardakan settlement of the Khazar raion in Baku, Azerbaijan. It is included in the Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture's list of monuments of world importance. In 2001, along with other objects of the coastal defence of the Caspian Sea, it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Reserve List.
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Azerbaijani: Tuba-Şahi məscidi
Built in 1481.
Ateshgah of Baku
A fortified religious pentagonal temple located in Suraxanı near Baku. Declared the country's historic-architectural state reserve in 2007. It stems from ancient Indians who moved here and used the natural gas coming from the ground for religious purposes. In the 1960s so much gas and oil extraction had been done that an artificial gas pipe had to be created to feed the fire, which is still burning.
Yanar Dağ, Burning Hillside
Yanar Dagh is a mountain whose natural gas vents have been aflame for a thousand years, even when it rains. Flames jet into the air from a thin, porous sandstone layer. A large touristy complex with small museum has been built around it, charging almost 5 times the price of 2017.
Abşeron Milli Parkı
A popular national park within the reach of Baku that allows for day trips. It houses a variety of flora and fauna, including tigers and loads of snakes that escaped from their cages a couple of years ago. After the entrance it is another 7 km to the park office, where you can see snakes and the rough coast. However, the snakes a mostly active between April and summer. It is better to go in the morning or evening to see other animals. During the day, you will be mostly out of luck. Also, a 4WD is a good idea to go through the dunes. Bring your passport.
About 500 m before the park entrance there is a nice spot for a dive into the sea with a sheer endless shallow sea, allowing you to walk in several 100 meters.
Sumqayit is known for its industrial ruins. It offers some spectacular and picturesque sights, in the middle of which there is sometimes a herd of sheep. Beware of the dogs - if they get too close, pick up a stone (and throw), they will remember the last painful experience and run off.