Ateshgah of Baku

What makes it special

Ateshgah is a fire temple. It was a centre of pilgrimage for Zoroastrians from the north-west of the Indian subcontinent, and it is also linked to Indian merchants from the Multan region of Punjab.

Its altar stands on four pillars, with a round sanctuary inside them. In the temple's day, only priests could enter that sanctuary to carry out the rituals.

The cells around the court were built for monks. Many have a low stone platform that served as both a bed and a place to meditate.

Seventeen inscriptions are carved in the cells. Fourteen are Hindu and two are Sikh, written in Indian scripts, and one is in Persian. Several rooms also hold the reserve's exhibits.

Visiting

Go in through the portal in the outer wall and walk to the altar first. Stand beside it and look in between the pillars at the flame and the round sanctuary.

Then go round the court along the walls, looking into each cell in turn. Some are bare rooms with only their stone platform; others carry the exhibits. In one of the exhibit rooms is a figure of Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god, which is easy to walk past if you skip a doorway.

Guided or on your own

The reserve's website, ateshgahtemple.az, lists guided tours of the temple in Azerbaijani and in other languages, and its home page takes tour orders online. Order one there before you set out, choosing the language you need, if you want a guide to take you round.