Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

President Ilham Aliyev on Tuesday signed an order on additional measures to speed up the restoration and conservation work on the Maiden Tower in Baku.

Due to the works, which started in April 2011, the Maiden Tower -- a historical symbol of Baku dating back to the ancient times -- has been closed for visitors since January 2013. The restoration and conservation operations are to be completed in September.

The Maiden Tower is a 28.5 meter construction on the Caspian Sea coast in the center of Azerbaijan's capital.

To accelerate the works, 2.5 million manats ($3.1 million) were allocated from the Azerbaijani President's Reserve Fund to the administration of the state historical-architectural preserve Icherisheher (Old City).

Earlier, head of the administration of Icherisheher, Mikail Jabbarov, said 75 percent of the restoration works on the facade of the tower, carried out by Austrian company Atelier Erich Pummer, which has restored over 400 monuments in locations throughout the world, have been completed.

After the restoration, the monument, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001, will acquire its historical appearance.

Besides restoration, scientific researches on Baku's prominent landmark have been underway since 2008, with the support of Azerbaijani First Lady, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Mehriban Aliyeva.

The history of the tower is still shrouded in mystery. There are a lot of different versions of the age, etymology and main purpose of the historical monument.

Some historians charge it was used as an observatory by ancient astronomers during the rule of the Seljuqs in Azerbaijan, while others say it was an important part of the city's defense system during the rule of the Sassanians. The most compelling theory, however, suggests that it was built as a Zoroastrian temple used for fire worshipping, sacrifice rituals and other religious ceremonies.

It is possible that the tower was used for all of the above-mentioned purposes at different times, and all these and other questions regarding its history need to find answers.

The study of the monument is not yet complete, but at present, it is known that the slab with the name of Masud ibn Davud, according to which the monument dates back to the XII century, has nothing to do with the monument itself and was embedded later. As part of the conservation work, new artifacts were also identified and are currently being studied.