The library of the National Museum of History of Azerbaijan houses several thousand publications on the history of Azerbaijan, the Caucasus, the Islamic East, Russia, and other regions. Among them is the chronicle «Тарихи “Дербендъ-Наме”» (The History of “Derbend-name”), published in Tiflis in 1898.

“Derbend-name” is an important written source for the study of medieval Derbent and the North-Eastern Caucasus. Around 40 manuscript copies of the work in different languages, as well as translations into European languages, are known.

In 1898, a Russian translation of one of the Azerbaijani manuscripts of “Derbend-name” was published in Tiflis. The translation was prepared on the initiative of Lieutenant General Maksud Alikhanov-Avarsky, a native of Khunzakh, by Safarali bey Valibeyov, a former teacher at the Gori Teachers’ Seminary. The publication contains information on the authorship of the work and its various manuscript versions, as well as the rule of the Sasanians and Arabs, Arab-Khazar relations, the defensive complex of Derbent, and the spread of Islam.

The chronicle also sheds light on the economic and political development of Derbent. In particular, it provides information on the activities of Caliph al-Mu'tamid (870–892) concerning the use of the city’s oil wells and salt deposits, its water supply, and the development of trade. In 1064, Derbent came under the rule of the Shirvanshahs.

This rare edition is a valuable source for the study of the history of medieval Derbent and the North-Eastern Caucasus.