Gobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
Entrance to the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape Reserve | |
| Location | Azerbaijan |
| Includes |
|
| Criteria | Cultural: (iii) |
| Reference | 1076rev |
| Inscription | 2007 (31st Session) |
| Area | 537.22 ha (1,327.5 acres) |
| Buffer zone | 3,096.34 ha (7,651.2 acres) |
| Coordinates | 40°7′30″N 49°22′30″E / 40.12500°N 49.37500°E |
Gobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve (Azerbaijani: Qobustan dövlət tarixi-bədii qoruğu) is a protected historic and natural site in Azerbaijan, located about 70 kilometres (43 mi) southwest of Baku, near the settlement of Gobustan. It was established to preserve the region’s prehistoric rock carvings, mud volcanoes, and natural musical stones.
The reserve includes the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape, which spans 537 hectares and contains over 6,000 rock carvings that depict people, animals, battles, ritual dances, bullfights, boats with armed oarsmen, warriors with lances, camel caravans, and celestial symbols such as the sun and stars, dating back 5,000 to 20,000 years.
The area was first declared the Gobustan State Historical Artistic Preserve in 1966 by a decree of the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan SSR. In 2007, the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. That same year, the site was formally designated a National Reserve by presidential decree and named the Gobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve. Since 2011, the Petroglyph Museum has been operating within the reserve.