|
Mahasthan or Mahasthangarh
represents the earliest and the largest archaeological site in Bangladesh,
consists of the ruins of the ancient city of pundranagara.
The site is 13 km north of Bogra town on the Dhaka-Dinajpur highway. The
ruins form an oblong plateau measuring 1500m N-S and 1400m E-W and are
enclosed on their four sides by rampart walls that rise to an average
height of 6m from river level. The highest point within the enclosure
at the southeast corner is occupied by the mazar (tomb) of shah
sultan mahisawar and by a mosque of the Mughal Emperor farrukh
siyar. The latter has been enclosed by a modern mosque, which
has been extended recently, a development that precludes the scope of
excavation here in future. The northern, western and southern sides of
the fortified city were encircled by a deep moat, traces of which are
visible in the former two sides and partly in the latter side. The river
Karatoya (Karatoya) flows on the eastern side. The moat and the river
might have served as a second line of defence of the fort city. Many isolated
mounds occur at various places outside the city within a radius of 8 km
on the north, south and west, testifying to the existence of suburbs of
the ancient provincial capital.
Many travellers and scholars, notably buchanan,
O'Donnell, Westmacott, beveridge
and Sir Alexander cunningham
visited this site and mentioned it in their reports. But it was
Cuningham who identified these ruins as the ancient city of Pundranagara
in 1879.
|
|
An aerial view of Mahasthan
site, Bogra |
The city was probably founded by the Mauryas, as testified by
a fragmentary stone inscription in the Brahmi script (mahasthan
brahmi inscription) mentioning Pudanagala (Pundranagara).
It was continuously inhabited for a long span of time.
|
|
Eastern gateway of Mahasthan |
The first regular excavation was conducted at the site
in 1928-29 by the Archaeological Survey of India under the guidance of
KN Diksit, and was confined to three mounds locally known as bairagir
bhita, govinda
bhita and a portion of the eastern rampart, together with the
bastion known as munir
ghun. Work was then suspended for three decades. It was resumed
in the early sixties when the northern rampart area, parasuram
palace (Parashuramer Prasad), mazar area, khodar
pathar bhita, mankalir
kunda mound and other places were excavated. The preliminary
report of these excavations was published in 1975. After about two decades
excavation was once more resumed in 1988. It then continued for almost
every year up to 1991. During this period the work was confined to areas
near the mazar and the northern and eastern rampart walls. But the work
done in this phase was of negligible scope compared to the vastness of
the site. The history and cultural sequence of the site were yet to be
established. The necessity of a thorough investigation for the reconstruction
of the early history of the site and the region, and for the understanding
of the organisation of the ancient city continued to be felt.
Consequently, under an agreement between the governments
of Bangladesh and France (1992) a joint venture by Bangladeshi and French
archaeologists was undertaken in early 1993. Since then archaeological
investigation is being carried out every year in an area close to the
middle of the eastern rampart. Excavations have also been conducted earlier
by the Department of Archaeology, Bangladesh, in a number of sites outside
the fortified city such as bhasu
vihar (Bhasu Vihara), bihar
dhap,
mangalkot and Godaibadi.
Excavation at the city has reached virgin soil at several
points. Of these, the recent excavations conducted by the France-Bangladesh
mission have revealed 18 building levels. The works carried out at different
times from 1929 to the present (including France-Bangladesh expeditions)
reveal the following cultural sequence:
Period I represents the
pre-Mauryan cultural phase characterised by large quantity of Northern
Black Polished Ware (NBPW) of phase B, Rouletted ware, Black and Red Ware
(BRW), black slipped ware, grey ware, stool querns, mud-built houses (kitchen)
with mud floors, hearths and post-holes. Fine NBPW are more numerous in
the lowermost levels; dishes, cups, beakers and bowls are the predominant
types. Only a brick-paved floor has been traced in a very restricted area
of this level, but no wall associated with this floor has been exposed
till now. It appears that the earliest settlement took place over the
Pliestocene formation. No precise date for this early settlement could
be ascertained. But some radiocarbon dates from the upper level go back
to late 4th century BC. This indicates that the 'early settlement' is
of pre-Mauryan period. It needs to be ascertained whether this phase belongs
to Nanda or pre/proto-historic culture.
|
|
Glazed pottery |
Black
polished ceramics |
Period II is represented
by the occurrence of broken tiles (the earliest evidence so far known
of this type of roofing), brick-bats used as temper or binding material
in the construction of mud walls (also sometimes reused in a domestic
context ie, fire place, terracotta ring well),
NBPW, common wares of pale red or buff colour, ring stone, bronze
mirror, bronze lamp, copper cast coins, terracotta plaques, terracotta
animal figurines, semi-precious stone beads, stone mullers and
querns. A few calibrated radiocarbon dates (366-162 BC, 371-173
BC) and the cultural materials indicate that this phase represents
the Mauryan period.
|
|
NBPW pieces |
Period
III represents the post-Mauryan (Shunga-Kusana) phase. It is
marked by substantial architectural remains of large sized and better-preserved
brick built houses, brick-paved floors, post-holes, terracotta ring
wells, large quantity of terracotta plaques of Shunga affiliation,
beads of semi-precious stones (agate, carnelion, quartz), silver
punch marked coins, silver bangle, copper cast coins, antimony rods,
terracotta pinnacle, large quantity of common pale red or buff wares
(especially dishes, cups and bowls) and grey wares. NBPW of course
fabric occurs in less frequency compared to Mauryan level. A few
radiocarbon dates give calibrated intervals 197-46 BC, 60 BC-172
AD, 40 BC-122 AD. |
|
Surya |
Period
IV represents the Kusana-Gupta phase. It is marked by the discovery
of substantial amount of Kusana pottery and terracotta figurines
with definite stylistic affiliation of the contemporary idiom. The
principal pottery types are handled cooking vessels with incised
designs, saucers, bowls, sprinklers and lids. Architectural remains
are scanty compared to its lower and upper phases. Building materials
are represented by small fragments of bricks. Other cultural materials
are terracotta beads, bowls, stone and glass beads, glass bangles,
terracotta seals and sealings. |
|
Horse riding
terracotta figurine |
Period V represents the Gupta and
late-Gupta phase. Radiocarbon data of this phase give calibrated
dates between 361 AD and 594 AD. The phase yielded remains of
a massive brick structure of a temple called Govinda Bhita, located
close to the fort-city, belonging to the late Gupta period, as
well as other brick structures - houses, floors, streets - in
the city, and huge antiquities, including terracotta plaques of
the characteristic style, seals, sealings, beads of terracotta,
glass and semi-precious stones, terracotta balls, discs, copper
and iron objects, and stamped wares.
|
|
Gold coins |
Period VI represents the Pala phase, evidenced
by architectural remains of several sites scattered throughout the eastern
side of the city, like Khodar Pathar Bhita, Mankalir Kunda, Parasuram's
Palace and Bairagir Bhita. This was the most flourishing phase and during
this period a large number of Buddhist establishments were erected outside
the city.
Period VII represents
the Muslim phase testified by the architectural remains of a 15 domed
mosque superimposed over the earlier period remains at Mankalir Kunda,
a single domed mosque built by Farrukh Siyar, and other antiquities like
Chinese celadon and glazed ware typical of the age. Bairagir Bhita, Khodar
Pathar Bhita, Mankalir Kunda Mound, Parasuram's Palace Mound and Jiat
Kunda are some sites inside the city which have yielded archaeological
objects of interest. In addition to these sites, excavations in 1988-91
have revealed three gateways of the city, a considerable portion of the
northern and eastern rampart, and a temple complex near the mazar area.
|
|
 |
Revers |
Obverse |
Beads (semi precious stone) |
Out of the
three gateways, two are in the northern rampart; one is 5m wide
and 5.8m long and is located 442m eastward from the northwest corner
of the fort, and the other, situated 6.5m eastward, is 1.6m wide.
The gateways were in use in two phases related to the early and
later Pala periods. The only gateway in the eastern rampart, located
almost in its middle and 100m east of Parasuram's Palace, is about
5m wide and is thought to have been built in the late Pala period
over the remains of an earlier gateway, which has not yet been fully
exposed. All the gateway complexes are provided with guardrooms
in the inner side, and bastions projecting outside the rampart walls. |
|
Beads (stone)
|
The temple complex exposed in the mazar area does not
reveal a coherent plan. It appears to have been built and rebuilt in five
phases, one superimposed over the other, covering the Pala period. The
antiquities recovered from the site include a few large size terracotta
plaques, toys, balls, ornamental bricks, and earthenwares.
The rampart of the city, built with burnt bricks, belongs to
six building periods. The earliest one belonged to the Maurya
period, whereas the subsequent ones correspond to Shunga-Kusana,
Gupta, early Pala, late Pala, and Sultanate periods. These walls
were successively built one above the other.
|
|
Jahajghata (wharf) |
Thus we get a succession of rampart walls as we see
the succession of cultural remains inside the city. However, the correlation
between the cultural remains of the city of the earliest level and the
earliest rampart wall (mud wall?) remains to be established.
Govinda Bhita, laksindarer
medh, Bhasu Vihar, Vihar Dhap, Mangalkot and Godaibadi Dhap
are excavated sites located outside the city but within its vicinity.
Many more mounds lie scattered in adjacent villages, which are believed
to contain cultural remains of the suburbs of the ancient fortified city
of Pundranagar. [Shafiqul Alam]
Bibliography
KN Dikshit, 'Annual Report 1928-29', Archaeological Survey of India,
Delhi, 1933; A Cunningham, 'Report of a Tour in Bihar and Bengal in 1879-1880
From Patna to Sonargaon', Archaeological Survey of India, Delhi
1969; N Ahmed, Mahasthan : A Preliminary Report of The Recent
Archaeological Excavations at Mahasthangarh, Dacca, 1975; Md Shafiqul
Alam & Jean-Francois Salle (ed), France-Bangladesh Joint Venture Excavations
at Mahasthangarh First Interim Report 1993-1999, Dhaka, 2001.
|
.jpg)
