Surakhany

Surakhany (Azerbaijani: Suraxanı) is a township of Baku, Azerbaijan.

It is known for the Ateshgah Temple (Azerbaijani: Ateşgah), an ancient Zoroastrian fire temple built on a pocket of natural gas that produced a natural eternal flame. Alas, heavy exploitation of the natural gas reserves in the area during Soviet rule resulted in the flame going out in 1969, and the temple is now supplied by a natural gas line. While records place a Zoroastrian temple in Surakhany since the 6th century, most of the current structure was built in the 18th and 19th centuries.

The township itself is poor and surrounded by the decaying petrochemical industry facilities that are endemic to the Abşeron Peninsula and the lasting legacy of the Soviet era.

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