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New Paleolithic discoveries made in Azikh and Taghlar caves, results expected next year

Farhad Guliyev, Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of ANAS

11 December 2025 16:23 (UTC +04:00)

Two Paleolithic monuments have been discovered in the Azikh and Taghlar caves. The results of these two monuments will be announced in the second half of next year, Farhad Guliyev, Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, told APA.

According to him, since the Azikh and Taghlar monuments are of international significance, expeditions with international teams operate during the research process: “These expeditions are conducted together with specialists from Azerbaijan, Germany, Japan, and Denmark. The expeditions are led by archaeologists from the Azerbaijan Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology. That is, both local and foreign specialists work together in the expeditions. Overall, this team includes 50 researchers. Half of them are Azerbaijani, and the other half are foreign. These expeditions are organised through long-term negotiations with scientific centres that can work with Azerbaijani specialists at these monuments and have deep knowledge of Azerbaijani culture. In addition, students from the relevant faculties of Azerbaijani universities and foreign universities are also involved in the expeditions.”

F. Guliyev stated that the main important element in studying the Azikh and Taghlar monuments is that every discovered sample undergoes complete laboratory analyses: “These analyses are conducted in well-known dating laboratories in Western countries. The results of the laboratory analyses require a certain amount of time because we are dealing with monuments that are 1.8 million years old, and time is needed to accurately study the nature of the findings. These analyses are carried out in several stages, and the results are published jointly after being announced to us.”

The director noted that very significant and interesting scientific results regarding these monuments will be obtained approximately in the first half of 2026: “These results will be obtained using more modern technological and methodological approaches, unlike the previous studies from the Soviet era. For this reason, the new results are also expected to be somewhat sensational. The scientific results will be announced after a joint meeting and published in serious scientific publications.”

According to F. Guliyev, the research conducted in the Azikh and Taghlar caves will continue until 2030: “These studies are very complex in nature. They are not limited to archaeological excavations alone but are carried out with the participation of geography, geology, and other scientific fields. The main goal here is to study the lifestyle, living conditions, and development dynamics of early humans during that period. Each sample is very valuable, which is why the soil layer is carefully taken and sent for analysis using scientific methods. Laboratory analyses provide reliable results only when conducted on properly collected samples.”