Sheki

I visited this WHS in 2023 and it really is worthwhile destination when visiting Azerbaijan. Located in the north of Azerbaijan, Sheki is so deeply hidden in the mountain valley of the Greater Caucasus that only red tile roofs and pointed tops of minarets can be seen amidst the dense greenery of the gardens when viewing from above (perhaps the best panoramic viewpoint of the old city is from beneath the World War II Memorial).

The biggest changes in Sheki's old neighborhoods since the early Middle Ages occured mainly during the Soviet Union era (you will surely notice the prevalence of old Lada cars!). The current peaceful setting of Sheki came about through millenia of turbulence in the region. Three millenia ago, Sheki (then called Sakesana or Sake, was one of the most famous cities in Caucasian Albania and at the beginning of the first millenium AD, the doctrine of Christ was brought to Sheki, and the first Christian churches were built here and independent Albanian dioceses arose (the small Church of Kish is definitely worth a visit while in Sheki). Sheki is also a city that stood on the Great Silk Road and once huge bazaars rumbled on the squares, and merchants invited buyers into their tents in dozens of languages and dialects, seducing them with the wonderful aromas of seasonings (the excellent and tasty purple "sumak" springs to mind), a rainbow of luxorious fabrics, the glitter of jewels and the sharpness of foreign swords. A few family-run …

Site visited October 2014. While the majority of tourists in Azerbaijan may not go outside the area of Baku, Sheki is an excellent reason to go there. It is a good place to see the other side of this country as opposite of Baku: traditional architecture and small town feeling in a beautiful setting on foothills of Caucasus Mountains. And the icing on the cake is the exquisite Khan’s Palace. That was also in my mind when I headed to Sheki.

At nine in the evening I hopped on a Sheki bound night train at the Baku railway station. The trip would last 10 hours. I had a bed in a four bed sleeper cabin. In the cabin were also a local father with a child and a granny. They were very friendly and in the beginning of the trip we had a cup of tea and biscuits together. They could speak only few words of English but still we could communicate with each other. At seven in the next morning the train left me alone in the darkness at Sheki railway station which is 15 kilometres away from the city. I waited at the station almost an hour for a taxi to show up.

From the centre of the city I walked along the main thoroughfare of the old city towards the Khan’s Palace. The city was just waking up. It was very quiet and you could see hardly anyone on the streets. Finally I reached the Khan's Palace …

This is a site probably few have heard of – I also did not know about it until I started preparing for my trip to Azerbaijan and stumbled upon this (then) TWHS. Sheki has been an independent country between 1743 and 1813 after it wriggled itself free from Persia. It lies in the far north of Azerbaijan, just below the snow-capped peaks of the Greater Caucasus and the border with Russia. The nomination Sheki, the Khan’s Palace covers more than the palace alone: the town’s trade and industry neighborhoods and vernacular architecture are included as well.

Sheki was the main center of silk production in the Caucasus. It was an important stop on the trade route between “the Dagestan Mountain Traders and the main East-West Caucasus Route”, according to my Trailblazer Guide to Azerbaijan. During my trip, I stayed for 2 nights in one of the two large former caravanserais in the old town: the 18th-century Yuxari Caravanserai. Its grounds are nicely renovated, although the rooms are a bit damp and moldy. But I did enjoy sitting in the little alcove in front of my room in the evenings.

The houses in the old part of Sheki town are all built in a similar style: their walls are a mix of brick and cobblestones, plus wooden windows. It’s a nice and quiet place to walk around, although unfortunately there’s not much you can enter.

The undoubted highlight of Sheki is the 18th-century summer palace of the Khan. …