There are many natural

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

s 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 ...

. Most of these caves are

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

ic caves and the remainder are volcanic caves (

lava tube A lava tube, more rarely called a pyroduct, is a 'roofed conduit through which molten lava travels away from its vent'. If lava in the tube drains out, it will leave an empty cave. Lava tubes are common in low-viscosity volcanic systems. La ...

s). These caves were also the first shelters and dwellings of

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

hominids The Hominidae (), whose members are known as the great apes or hominids (), are a taxonomic family of primates that includes eight extant species in four genera: '' Pongo'' (the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli orangutan); '' Gorilla'' (the ...

and

humans Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

. Azykh Cave, one of the most famous caves of Azerbaijan, is known as the settlement of Stone Age hominids. It was determined that the cave was the settlement of the

Acheulean Acheulean (; also Acheulian and Mode II), from the French after the type site of Saint-Acheul, is an archaeological industry of stone tool manufacture characterized by the distinctive oval and pear-shaped "hand axes" associated with ''Homo ...

and the

Mousterian The Mousterian (or Mode III) is an Industry (archaeology), archaeological industry of Lithic technology, stone tools, associated primarily with the Neanderthals in Europe, and with the earliest anatomically modern humans in North Africa and We ...

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

s. During the period of the Mousterian culture,

Neanderthals Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...

lived in Azykh Cave.Лазуков Г. И., Гвоздовер М. Д., Рогинский Я. Я., «Природа и древний человек» Издательство «Мысль», 1981 стр 71-72

List of caves in Azerbaijan

The list does not include all caves.

List of cave complexes in Azerbaijan

The list does not include all cave complexes.

Gallery

File:Azokh Cave3.jpg, Entrance of Azykh Cave File:Azokh.jpg, A bat in Azykh Cave File:Azokh Cave.jpg, Archaeological excavations in Azykh Cave in 2009 File:Ashab ul Kahf Cave in Azerbaijan.JPG, Ashabi-Kahf Cave File:Mərəzə mağaraları.jpg, Mereze Cave File:Mərəzə mağarasının içərisi.jpg, Interior of Mereze Cave File:Qaradağ rayonu, su mağaraları.jpg, Karstic cave in Qaradag District File:Qaradağ rayonu, Ümid qəsəbəsi yuxarısında su mağarası.jpg, Karstic cave formation in Qaradag District File:Qazanfar caves.jpg, Cave in

Gobustan District Gobustan District () is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the east of the country, in the Mountainous Shirvan Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Shamakhi, Khizi, Absheron, and Hajigabul. Its capital a ...

References

{{Azerbaijan topics

Caves Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance underground (such as rock ...

List of caves in Azerbaijan

List of cave complexes in Azerbaijan

Gallery

See also

References