The larger of Mardakan's two castles stands in the village centre and is impossible to miss: a square tower 25 metres high and five storeys tall, built in the 14th century. Unlike the round fortress, this one was designed as the primary defensive stronghold of the settlement rather than an isolated watchtower, and the scale reflects that purpose.
The tower was commissioned by Akhsitan I of the Shirvan dynasty and incorporates the blind decorative arcade typical of the Shirvan-Absheron school. The interior once held exhibition space but access arrangements change — the exterior and the surrounding walls are always visible. Seeing both castles together, they form a pair that no other Absheron village can match.