Wikimedia CEE Hub/Microgrants/Applications 2026/MG-03

statusfunded

CEE Hub Microgrant

Documentation of the Gobustan Rock Carvings

Gobustan State Historical and Artistic Reserve was established in 1966. Since 2007, the territory of the reserve has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Rock carvings were created here by people who lived 10–12 thousand years ago. These carvings are highly unique. They depict hunting scenes, dances, and animals observed by ancient people.

targetWikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, Wikidata

proposed start date1 April

proposed end date1 May

budget (EUR)690 EUR

grant typegroup of invididuals

applicant• Rəcəb Yaxşı

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This is a generated Meta-Wiki page by the CEE Hub Staff. The page was copied from the specific Google Form, where grantees has submitted their application for the CEE Hub Microgrant programme. Please do not make any changes. Use the discussion page for your feedback.

Basic information

You are applying as

• Group of individuals

Your name(s)/Organisation name

• Rajab Hasanbayli, Kamran Ramazan

Your username(s)

• Rəcəb Yaxşı, Canmron

What is your role in the movement?

• Editor

If you are a part of a WM community, please state its name here

• n/a

Have you applied for any Wikimedia Foundation grant or any other grant before?

• Yes

Name of your proposed microgrant project

• Documentation of the Gobustan Rock Carvings

Proposed start date of the project

• 1 April 2026

Proposed end date of the project

• 1 May 2026

In which CEE country/ies will the project activities be implemented?

• Azerbaijan

Project information

What is the main goal of your project?

• Gobustan State Historical and Artistic Reserve was established in 1966. Since 2007, the territory of the reserve has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Rock carvings were created here by people who lived 10–12 thousand years ago. These carvings are highly unique. They depict hunting scenes, dances, and animals observed by ancient people.
• The reserve covers an area of 3,096 hectares, and the carvings are mainly located on three mountains within the reserve. The rocky areas are protected by the state. There are thousands of petroglyphs here. Of these, 1,067 have been officially registered as historical monuments and are protected under a decision issued by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
• In addition, there are special stones in this area that were once used by people as musical instruments. There is even a preserved inscription carved by a soldier of the Roman Legion XII Fulminata, dating from 58 BC to the early 5th century AD, who passed through this territory.
• Although some photographs of the petroglyphs are available on Wikimedia Commons, they are very limited and mainly show carvings from only a few major rocks. Moreover, they have not been properly categorized. Our goal is to photograph a larger number of rock carvings and upload them to Wikimedia Commons.

Describe which activities you plan to implement

• Together with my teammate, we are planning to visit the reserve several times over the course of one month. We intend to explore the rocky areas and professionally photograph the rock carvings using a high-quality camera.
• Afterwards, we will process the photographs and select the best images to upload to Wikimedia Commons, ensuring that they are properly categorized. In addition, we plan to create separate articles about some of the main rocks and translate them into several foreign languages.

Describe your team

• I am Rəcəb Yaxşı, and I have been participating in the "Wiki Loves Monuments" project for many years. The photographs I have taken have repeatedly been recognized with various awards both nationally and internationally. In addition, I am an active contributor to both Wikidata and Wikipedia in several languages. In addition, I have previously carried out work related to rock formations on my own initiative in 2019. At that time, I photographed 10,000-year-old rock carvings located in Gamigaya and uploaded the images to Wikimedia Commons. (Category:Gamigaya Petroglyphs)
• My friend Canmron has been active on Wikipedia in various languages for many years. He will assist me in photographing, selecting, and uploading the images.

For which Wikimedia projects is the project relevant? For which communities is the project relevant? What is your target group?

• The photographs taken will mainly be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. New categories will be created for them, and existing categories will be improved.
• Subsequently, each monument will be catalogued on Wikidata under the “Cultural Heritage Azerbaijan ID.” Articles about the existing monuments will be written (or improved) on Wikipedia and later translated into several foreign languages.

Do you have any metrics for the proposed grant proposal? If yes, please fill in the number of participants, editors, organisers and content contributions (Wikipedia articles, Wikimedia Commons images, Wikidata items, etc.)

• The project will mainly be carried out by two people. Several others will assist us with translations into foreign languages. We are planning to visit the site 3 to 5 times.
• According to my estimates, more than 1,000 photographs will be taken in total. Approximately 300 to 500 of them will be selected and uploaded to Wikimedia Commons.
• The total number of officially registered rock monuments is 1,067. Of course, we aim to photograph all of them. However, the area is very large — 3,096 hectares covering three major mountains.

Financial information

What is the amount that you are requesting for this grant proposal?

• 690 EUR

Please provide the budget of your grant proposal

Expense type	Expense details	Number of Units	Unit Price	Expense Total
Travel	Bus and taxis (several times, 67 km from Baku)	1	€230.00	€230.00
Food/drinks	Food and drinks for 5 days for 2 people	1	€180.00	€180.00
Rental services	Camera rental (for 5 days)	1	€280.00	€280.00
TOTAL				€690.00

Other

Any additional comments or remarks about your project

• The project is also important because the reserve is an open-air site. The rocks have been exposed to natural elements for years. The sooner we document them, the better.