Lekh Castle


Lekh Castle, sometimes named Lev Castle is a castle west of the abandoned Qanlıkənd village of the Kalbajar Rayon of Azerbaijan.

History

Lekh Castle was built during the Mongol rule of Azerbaijan in the 13th–14th centuries. It is one of several castles on Kalbajar's highlands. It was constructed over the Ayrım Gorge, on a high Khos forest mountain's ridge from the right bank of Lev River flowing by Qanlıkənd village. Archaeologists suspect that the castle was built on caravan routes and that its main purpose was to observe and protect traveling caravans.

Features

The castle is surrounded by steep rocks and streams from three sides, and looks like a natural rock relief. The only entrance to the castle is from the gates on the north-eastern edge. The internal length of the castle is, and its width is. The internal castle is in the higher south-western corner. The average thickness of the walls of Lekh Castle is. There are water wells deep that were used for storage, the cooling of food, and as a source of drinking water. Nowadays, the walls are in ruins. Around Lekh Castle, there are other smaller satellite castles on surrounding mountain peaks such as Garavul and Jomard castles. Close to the Lekh Castle there are two caves where archaeologists found items indicating the early presence of human beings.
The castle bears a state historical importance.