The Azerbaijani town of Lahij depends on a canyon of the Nial hills, concerning a three-hour drive west of Baku. Its slim patched roads, residences made from rocks from the river, workshops and also shops look equally as they did centuries earlier.
Lahij has actually long been called the town of craftsmens. Crafts consisting of natural leather manufacturing and also carpeting weaving are exercised there. Nevertheless, it is the coppersmiths that made Lahij well-known. Very decorative, in your area made copperware is the sign of this tiny town.
Kebleyi Aliyev is a coppersmith that lives and also operates in Lahij. He informs us that his workshop is 300 years of ages. It was opened up in 1725 and also is still functional today. His excellent grandpas, uncles, their kids and also all his forefathers have actually laboured in his workshop. Kebleyi himself has actually functioned there given that he was 5 years of ages and also currently at the age of 50, he describes that his kids will certainly be the 8th generation of his household to function there.
An old craft
Copper production is just one of the earliest kinds of metalwork. The technique of developing and also enhancing copperware go back countless years, to not long after individuals initially found out just how to remove this steel from the ground.
The techniques and also methods of this craft have actually transformed little bit for many years. Neighborhood coppersmiths still make use of standard devices like sledgehammers and also blades. It’s effort that needs stamina, endurance, and also perseverance.
Haji Aliyev is one more copper craftsmen. He handles the decor and also embellishment of tableware after Kebleyi has actually formed the recipes from raw copper and also covered them with a layer of tin. He describes that each meal is special, “you can not maintain using the exact same pattern to every meal.”
His motivation originates from the recipes themselves. The only device he utilizes is a sculpt. He does not also map or describe an illustration prior to he starts, he envisions it in his mind prior to he begins engraving.
Today, copper tableware made in Lahij gets on display screen in several of the globe’s most well-known galleries, consisting of the Louvre in Paris and also it’s extremely valued in your area as well. As Kamal Aliyev, the supervisor of the Lahij State Historic and also Cultural Book claims, they understand that copper art in Lahij go back centuries. There is proof that tableware was also made there in the 11th century. “In addition to that, in the different areas of Azerbaijan, excavators have actually uncovered copper coins that were made in Lahij throughout the Center Ages”, he includes.
In 2015, copper workmanship was etched on the UNESCO Rep Listing of the Abstract Social Heritage of Mankind.
