Shamakhi

Shamakhi (Shemakha, Şamaxı) is a town in Azerbaijan's Baku Region, capital of the Shamakhi Rayon.

Understand
Shemakha - is the more classic international way of spelling (originated from Russian pronunciation). Shamakhi is the formal Azeri internal spelling.

History
Shamakhi was one of the ancient cities of the east. It became famous as the home of many prominent Azerbaijani philosophers, architects and scientists, such as Khagani, Nasimi, Bakuvi, Sabir, Shirvani, Hajibababekov. The town used to be capital of Medieval state of Shirvan and played one of the major roles in the region until its destruction in 1717 by Dagestanian semi-states. Under the Russian Empire Shamakhi was the capital of Shemakha Governorate, but the earthquake of 1859 devastately hurt the city. Then capital moved to Baku and the Governorate was renamed. Shemakhi is mentioned by the great Russian poet A.S. Pushkin in "The Tale of the Golden Cockerel" ("Give me to you a damsel, Shemahan queen.").

Seismicity
The city is located in the most seismic area of the Caucasus and was hit by powerful earthquakes in 1191 and 1859, which was so destructive that the capital of Shirvan was transferred to Baku twice. In 1872, the earthquake triggered emigration to Baku, where oil production had started in industrial proportions.

The 1667 Shamakhi earthquake is considered to have been the worst with a death toll of 80,000, with one-third of the city collapsed, according to the Persian merchants' reports. The last catastrophic earthquake was recorded in 1902, which destroyed the 10th-century Juma Mosque. Shamakhi is near the boundary of three plates.

By car
You can reach the town by following the M4 highway, the northern Baku-Tbilisi connection along the Caucasus Mountains.

Get around
Shamakhi can easily be explored on foot.

See






Do

 * Note: The mountain on which the fortress is located is quite steep, so you need to be extremely careful when climbing and descending. Do not forget about the potential snakes in spring and summer weather. So, the main thing to wear good shoes (against thorns in June and potential snakes).
 * Note: The mountain on which the fortress is located is quite steep, so you need to be extremely careful when climbing and descending. Do not forget about the potential snakes in spring and summer weather. So, the main thing to wear good shoes (against thorns in June and potential snakes).

Go next

 * Baku – Buses heading for Baku will call here for a few moments, if there are free seats, they can be purchased for 4 manat. Otherwise many private taxis surround the station offering faster transport, usually a seat can be purchased for 5 manat if you negotiate.
 * Sheki – A beautiful city in the west and in the Caucasus mountains with lots to see and do. It has one of the largest densities of cultural resources and monuments that span 2,700 years of Azerbaijani history.
 * Lahich – A cozy and remote highland village nearby in the west. Famous for its copper work. Can be hard to reach by bus, but you might be able to find a cheap taxi for the 40-50 km. Otherwise take a bus along M4 west, and hitch-hike the rest.
 * Ganja – Azerbaijan's second largest city has a long history, some important sites and an interesting and manifold architecture. There is probably no direct bus, but from Agsu, 30 km south west, there should be.