Gobustan National Park, UNESCO, Qobustan, Azerbaijan

Gobustan National Park, UNESCO, Qobustan, Azerbaijan 

In 1966, Gobustan was declared a national historical landmark of Azerbaijan in an attempt to preserve the ancient carvings, relics, mud volcanoes and gas-stones in the region. In 2007 Gobustan was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site considered to be of “outstanding universal value” for the quality and density of its rock art engravings depicting images of hunting, fauna, flora and lifestyles in pre-historic times and for the cultural continuity between prehistoric and medieval times that the site reflects.

Gobustan is very rich in archaeological monuments. The reserve has more than 6,000 rock engravings dating back between 5,000 – 40,000 years. The site also features the remains of inhabited caves, settlements and burials, all reflecting an intensive human use by the inhabitants of the area during the wet period that followed the last Ice Age, from the Upper Paleolithic to the Middle Ages.

Epic Azerbaija Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound