Shahbuz Tower

The Shahbuz Tower is a medieval watchtower built at the beginning of the first millennium CE, perched on high ground near Shahbuz settlement. It is the archaeological monument that gave the district its name and has been registered as a heritage site since 1990.

The tower sits on a rocky ridge with commanding views of the valley below, which explains its position — it was part of a defensive network controlling movement through the mountain passes. The finds recovered from archaeological investigations span from the early centuries CE through the 15th–16th centuries, showing the site was intermittently occupied and reoccupied over a very long period.

Getting to the tower requires a walk from the settlement. The road is not always passable by ordinary car; ask locally about conditions before setting out.

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A story
The Shahbuz Tower gave the district its name — or rather, the mountain gave both the tower and the district their name. "Shahbuz" is thought to derive from the Persian for "royal falcon," the bird that was a symbol of royalty across the medieval Islamic world. A tower named for a falcon, on a mountain named for a falcon, in a district that took the same name: the etymology ran deep in this part of the Caucasus.