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Citadel, Ancient City and Fortress Buildings of Derbent

The Citadel, Ancient City and Fortress Buildings of Derbent were part of the northern lines of the Sasanian Persian Empire, which extended east and west of the Caspian Sea. The fortification was built in stone. It consisted of two parallel walls that formed a barrier from the seashore up to the mountain. The town of Derbent was built between these two walls, and has retained part of its medieval fabric. The site continued to be of great strategic importance until the 19th century.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1070

The Citadel, Ancient City and Fortress Buildings of Derbent are part of a strategic Sasanian defence system from the 5th century.

Derbent is situated on the western shores of the Caspian Sea, in present-day Dagestan. It was in the position to control the traffic between Europe and the Middle East, and shield the prospering agricultural peoples of the Middle East from devastating raids of nomadic tribes from the steppes of South-Eastern Europe.

The defence structures that were built by the Sasanians were in continuous use by the succeeding Persian, Arabic, Mongol, and Timurid governments. Its militairy function lasted til the 19th century. Its name is a Persian word: “Darband”, meaning "closed gates".

The fortifications consist of:

• Two parallel defence walls, 3.6km long, stretching from the sea up to the mountains. They were built from stone and had 73 defence towers. 9 out of the 14 original gates remain.

• Naryn-Kala Citadel: most of the old buildings, including a palace and a church, are now in ruins. It also holds baths and one of the oldest mosques in the former USSR.

• the ancient City, between the two walls, holds interesting courtyard houses, mosques, baths, madrasahs, and the remains of a caravanserai.

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/list/id/1070