Murad's Gate () is a large portal located in the eastern wall of the

Palace of the Shirvanshahs The Palace of the Shirvanshahs (, ) 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 ...

complex's central courtyard in the Old City of

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

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 ...

. It is the only building of the 16th century on the territory of the complex. The Murad's Gate forms part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

-listed

History

Historical setting

In 1576, after the death of Shah Tahmasib I, his successor, Shah Ismail II, ascends the throne. The new ruler, not respecting the terms of the Amasia treaty concluded in 1555, is trying to win over the Ottoman emirs to his side. Therefore, the Ottoman

Sultan Murad III Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used ...

instructs the beylerbey Vana to ensure the stability in the region. The relations become even more tense after the Safavid wali of Luristan joins the Ottomans. After the death of Shah Ismail II in 1577, the struggle for the throne began. In such a difficult political situation for the Safavid state, Sultan Murad III declares it war. The war, which covered the 1578-1590s, was fought on the Caucasian front in the north, and on the Iraqi front in the south. In 1578, Muhammad Khudabende ascended the Safavid throne. As a result of the Childir battle that took place on 9 August 1578 between the Ottoman and the Safavid armies, the last lost the control over all of Georgia, including

Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

. As a result of the battle between the Ottomans and the Safavids in 1583,

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...

and

Shirvan Shirvan (from ; ; Tat: ''Şirvan'') is a historical region in the eastern Caucasus, as known in both pre-Islamic Sasanian and Islamic times. Today, the region is an industrially and agriculturally developed part of the Republic of Azerbaijan ...

came under the control of the Ottomans. Their borders in the east expanded as much as possible, and they for the first time got access to the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

. According to the Istanbul Treaty, signed by the Ottomans and the Safavids in 1590, it was recognized the transfer of the entire Shirvan to the Ottomans’ rule.

Construction

Murad's Gate is the only building of the 16th century on the territory of the Shirvanshahs’ Palace complex. The Arabic inscription between the two medallions at the top of the portal reads: It was built by the Tabriz architect Amirshah.

Function

If you pay attention to the general plan of the palace's complex, it becomes obvious that in this part of the courtyard there is not even a single door through which you can get into the palace building. Therefore, the portal is, as it was, isolated and not "tied" with the walls adjacent to it. The portal is built of good quality facing stones with fine seams well cut. The wall, made of roughly hewn stones, neither in size nor at the seams, does not correspond to the masonry of the portal and gives the impression of a temporary nature and a later origin. S. Dadashov and M. Useynov note that, perhaps, one of the rulers wanted to build a building here, but something prevented him from. In addition, according to the inscription on the portal, it was ordered to build a building here, and not a gate.

Architectural features

The portal is located in the eastern wall of the central courtyard of the Shirvanshahs’ Palace complex. Architecturally, it is sustained in the style of the sofa and the tomb of the Shirvanshahs, but in terms of the processing and decoration quality it is inferior to them. In the portals of the sofa and the Shirvanshahs’ tomb, a low but well-drawn doorway, was a kind of scale, thanks to which the impression of great monumentality and even the grandeur of the portal itself was created. This is not the case here. The entrance part of the portal with a wide, low, disproportionate opening significantly weakens the overall impression.

References

Literature

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Murad's Gate Buildings and structures in Baku World Heritage Sites in Azerbaijan Tourist attractions in Baku Palace of the Shirvanshahs 16th-century architecture