4. Ateshgah of Baku
The Baku Ateshgah, called as well the “Fire Temple of Baku” is a castle-like religious temple in Surakhani, a suburb in Baku. It is believed that the temple was used as a Zoroastrian place of worship. Also, this structure is known because once natural gas was flowing to the temple, producing the “holy fire”. Tectonic movements led to the fact that the gas outlet to the surface of the Earth stopped, the fire extinguished and in 1880 the temple emptied. However, today, the place of the ancient Zoroastrian temple is open to tourists, but the fire is artificial. The Ateshgah was nominated for List of World Heritage Sites, UNESCO, in 1998 and was declared a state historical-architectural reserve in 2007.
Thank you so much for the article about Azerbaijan! I’m going to make a trip in this beautiful country.