Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

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For more than 165 years, photography has captured Azerbaijan's history, cultural heritage, and the changes that have shaped the country over time.

To commemorate the 165th anniversary of Azerbaijani photography and honor its enduring legacy, a special commemorative postage stamp featuring the country's earliest known photographs has been issued at the initiative of the Gilavar Photo Club Public Union, AzerNEWS reports.

The stamp was produced by Azerpost LLC, a company within AZCON Holding, and features some of the earliest known photographs taken in Azerbaijan.

The commemorative stamp is intended to preserve the historical images that mark the beginning of Azerbaijani photography through philately.

For the first time, one of the country's most valuable visual records documenting the emergence of photographic art has been depicted on a postage stamp. Beyond recognizing the development of photography in Azerbaijan, the stamp is also expected to promote the country's rich photographic heritage to the international community through philatelic collections.

The stamp was printed in 4,000 copies in a souvenir sheet (mini-sheet) format by bpost (Belgian Post).

Photography in Azerbaijan dates back to 1861, when panoramic images of Baku Bay were captured from the sea.

These photographs are regarded as the earliest known images taken on the territory of Azerbaijan and symbolize the birth of the country's national photographic tradition.

Photography in Azerbaijan dates back to 1861, when panoramic images of Baku Bay were captured from the sea. Taken by Captain-Lieutenant Alexander (Aleksey) Ulsky, these photographs are regarded as the earliest known images captured in present-day Azerbaijan and are considered the starting point of the country's photographic history. They also represent the first known photographic views of Baku.

Photography developed rapidly in the late 19th century as Baku emerged as one of the world's leading oil-producing cities. The city's economic boom attracted photographers from across Europe and the Russian Empire, who documented its expanding urban landscape, architecture, oil fields, and everyday life. Their work created an invaluable visual record of Azerbaijan during a period of profound social and economic transformation.

Over the decades, photography has played an essential role in preserving Azerbaijan's cultural heritage, documenting historical events, and promoting the country's artistic traditions. Today, many of these early photographs are preserved in museums, archives, and private collections, offering a unique window into Azerbaijan's past

Established in 1999 by a group of Azerbaijani photographers and photography enthusiasts, the Gilavar Photo Club Public Union is dedicated to promoting the art of photography, preserving Azerbaijan's visual heritage, and supporting the development of both professional and amateur photographers.

Since its establishment, the organization has hosted numerous photo exhibitions, competitions, workshops, masterclasses, festivals, and educational initiatives both in Azerbaijan and abroad. Its activities focus on nurturing young photographers, documenting the country's cultural and historical heritage, and promoting international cooperation in the field of photography.

In 2026, the Gilavar Photo Club Public Union introduced the "IRS" project, an initiative aimed at creating a comprehensive digital archive of Azerbaijan's historical, architectural, and archaeological monuments. The project seeks to make the country's cultural heritage more accessible to researchers, tourists, and the general public.

As part of the project's first phase, the irs.gilavar.az website was upgraded with new sections and an expanded photo archive. The platform currently features information on more than 200 historical, architectural, and archaeological monuments across nine regions of Azerbaijan, accompanied by over 2,600 photographs.

A key innovation of the project is the development of the "IRS" mobile application for Android devices.

Through both the website and the mobile app, users can explore detailed information about heritage sites, view their locations on an interactive map, and generate navigation routes to selected monuments.