AZERBAIJAN: An ancient Azeri village prospers on the centuries-old skills of its metal craftsmen

Record ID: 218112

  • Title: AZERBAIJAN: An ancient Azeri village prospers on the centuries-old skills of its metal craftsmen
  • Date: 27th September 2006
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Azeri) LAHIC BLACKSMITH, KABLALI ALIYEV, SAYING: "All this work is done by hand, and it's the fruits of my labour. The items that I make can be found all over the world. Tourists constantly buy my works and take them home.''
  • Embargoed: 12th October 2006 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Azerbaijan
  • Country: Azerbaijan
  • Topics: Industry
  • Reuters ID: LVA99QY870IEPR6A03HWIDDH3LNK
  • Story Text: In one of Azerbaijan's most remote regions an ancient art form continues to provide a livelihood for its villagers. The small village of Lahic is tucked away deep in the mountains, but it still prospers due to an old tradition of metalworking.
    Lahic is situated about 1,600 metres above sea level in the south part of the Caucasus Mountain range. The village was founded over 1,000 years ago as a centre for copper mining. The rich deposits attracted the finest metal craftsmen in the region and allowed this rough mountain area, where crops grow poorly, to build up a dynamic economy. Even today, the livelihoods of more than half of Lahic's population of 3,600 is connected to metalworking.
    "I have been working as a blacksmith since the fifth grade,'' said Kablali Aliyev, a Lahic blacksmith. "My father taught me to make samovars and plates according to the old ways. Now, I see it as my responsibility to pass this knowledge onto my children,'' Aliyev said.
    The metalworking process begins with melting the copper in a hot furnace. Workers then pour it into a round form, and after it cools the piece is forged by several blacksmiths. Next, craftsmen refine the rough metal into a delicate and shapely vessel for carrying water or other liquids. During the last stage, more skilled craftsmen will painstakingly chisel intricate carvings onto the surface of the vessel.
    The sound of the craftsmen hammering is everywhere in Lahic.
    "All this work is done by hand, and it's the fruits of my labour,'' Aliyev said. "The items that I make can be found all over the world. Tourists constantly buy my works and take them home,'' he said.
    To reach Lahic, one must travel a dangerous and winding dirt road that runs along the Girdimanchai river gorge. At one point, you come to a shaky and flimsy bridge that crosses the torrent below. There is a sheer drop down to the river. During the winter months, ice and snow makes this road impassable, and Lahic is cut off from the rest of the world.
    Everything about Lahic bears witness to its ancient origins. The streets are narrow and winding, and the houses are built from stone quarried from along the river.
    The isolation of this picturesque village has helped make Lahic a unique part of Azerbaijan. This uniqueness can be seen everywhere, especially in the local language, Tat, which is an old Persian dialect. Their language gives some basis to the legend of the village being founded by a fugitive Persian sheikh, who found this remote area to be a perfect hide-away.
    Due to the natural environment around Lahic, the locals have become resourceful in many other ways as well. The frequent earthquakes in the area have resulted in the villagers developing their own building techniques, such as using traditional cross-ties made of stone and wood, known in Tat as 'divarchu', or the wooden wall. The results of these old building techniques are almost as impressive as their metalwork, and earthquake damage is almost unheard of in Lahic.
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