Naftalan, Health resort city in central Azerbaijan.
Naftalan is a health resort town in west-central Azerbaijan between Gəncə and the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The facilities cluster around several streets with low buildings and small gardens between treatment centers.
A German engineer named Jaeger founded the first production facility for the medicinal oil in the late 19th century after studying local healing methods. Soviet authorities expanded the facilities in the 1920s and brought doctors from Moscow to study the treatments.
The resort hotels offer dedicated rooms where visitors rest after treatments and drink water from local springs. Parks along the main street display sculptures made from drilling equipment and wooden benches beneath old plane trees.
Most visitors stay for treatment cycles of ten to fourteen days at one of the specialized resorts. The streets are flat and easy to walk, with covered pathways between the main buildings.
The crude oil extracted here is the only one in the world used for medical purposes and does not burn when lit. Visitors can see crutches and walking aids left behind by former patients after their treatments at a small museum.
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