“Azeri mosques were generally very simple because we suppose that in the house of God we have to think about God and not the decorations in the interior,” our guide said. “But this was a royal, Shah, mosque and, therefore, it was nicely decorated.” She pointed to the mihrab (altar) of the big hall: “Now, as you see, not only the decorations are gone but it is full of bullet holes made by Russians who were here.”