call intoShaki's craft shops
Once an important trade hub along the Silk Road, Shaki continues to exude the spirit of the past. On the historic trading street, named after the legendary local writer Mirza Fatali Akhundzadeh, you can step into small boutiques to enter a staggering world of authentic craftsmanship.
Whether it is witnessing patterns being printed onto the colourful kelaghayi headscarves, traditionally worn by Azerbaijani women, or clothes and cushions being decorated with intricate floral designs using a technique known as tekelduz embroidery, Shaki offers a host of different crafts to catch the interest of all.
Visitors can also meet talented artisans as they make pots, papags (a national hat), miniature caskets, and national instruments, whose skills have been passed down through generations. In Shaki Fortress, a shebeke workshop displays spectacular mosaics painstakingly composed from thousands of tiny pieces of stained glass, held together in wooden lattices of all shapes and sizes.
