The Fortress Wall of Old City Baku
-By Fuad Akhundov

The fortress wall of the old city of Baku is a source of pride to Bakuites. Not every city with a rampart constructed at the time of the Crusaders is so well preserved. Nor do many extend for a distance of 500 meters, as Baku’s rampart does. The rampart also enabled the preservation of the medieval image of the old town, with its numerous lanes, snaking streets and the flavor of an oriental city.

Initially, two ramparts encircled Baku. The internal rampart is almost completely preserved. It was constructed by King Manuchekhr II (1120-1149). The outer wall was much lower in height, and was installed by the local ruler, Zufuqar-khan in 1608-1609. The walls were surrounded by a deep moat that could be filled by underground water in times of danger.

The khanate of Baku (a kind of Muslim duchy) was annexed to the Russian Empire in 1806. The fortress walls were last used for defense in 1826. Cannons mounted on the walls repelled a last, desperate Persian attack.

At the beginning of industrial exploitation of oil in the 1870’s, Baku grew rapidly. In 1859, the population of the city barely exceeded 13,500 inhabitants, most of who lived inside the old city walls. By 1903, there were 143,000 Bakuites, and by 1913, the "black gold" had increased the population to more than 214,000.

The tiny medieval fortress was, of course, too small to hold all these people. So the outer rampart was taken down in 1884, along with the wall on side of the old city facing the sea. Stones from this wall were used to renovate the inner wall.

But Bakuites did not want to lose the old, outer wall forever. The primary entrance to the old city, Shemakha Gate had one gate in the outer wall, and one in the inner wall. So, as the outer was dissembled, stonemasons skillfully inserted a copy of the outer entrance into the inner wall, side by side with the original inside gate. A visitor with a sharp eye for color will notice that the stones of the left entrance are slightly whiter. City residents renamed the gates "Gosha-Gala Gapysy," meaning, in Azeri, the Twin Gates. This is the only double entrance among the five gates of the fortress wall.

The most interesting detail over both entrances is the oldest coat of arms of Baku. It is composed of two lions, and the head of a bull with two discs around the bull’s head. The German traveler, Kempfer, deciphered the symbols in 1863, as follows:

Lions were often used in Oriental heraldry as symbols of strength. The bull and the cow were sacred animals to the Zoroastrians (even today, killing these animals is prohibited in India). The discs symbolized the sun and moon. So, Kempfer concluded, the lions (that is, the fortress walls) protect the bull (i.e., the city) during day (the sun) and night (the moon).

This oldest emblem of Baku probably did not meet with favor when Islam arrived in Baku, and was at some point consigned to history. Other emblems took their place until the 1880’s. Then, a new coat of arms was designed with three torch flames representing the Zoroastrian tradition. But the way the flames were carved in the limestone of the mayor’s office, they resemble moneybags. So people used to joke that the emblem had nothing to do with fire, but represented the wealth of Baku during the first oil boom.

Fuad Akhundov is an Interpol Senior Inspector in Baku. He is, as he describes himself, an enthusiastic historian who has taught many foreign residents to appreciate the architectural charms of Baku.n's Press, New York.