DOCSLIB.ORG

Karandighi Police Station : a General Description 34 Bricks of Kshetrabari 34 the Antiquities of Paniha 35 Images from Karandighi Police Station 35-37

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Karandighi Police Station : a General Description 34 Bricks of Kshetrabari 34 the Antiquities of Paniha 35 Images from Karandighi Police Station 35-37 HISTORY OF NORTH BENGAL — ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROBINGS IN THE DISTRICT OF NORTH DINAJPUR Thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Arts) of the University of North Bengal, India 2000 •sieti By Smarajit Ghosh M. A. (History) I RaainitttUMiwr' Supervised by Dr. Mandira Bhattacharya, Reader Department of History University of North Bengal India &£ '.CBP. I4042t 1 fi MAR 2001 88° O' E DISTRICT UTTAR DINAJPUR SCALE 5 O 5 ID 15 20 KM t. • I II I -J arjeellng Dt. Sq Q SP KM-HJglEal^Jjrl Df. 26] O' N INDEX International Boundory •••—••— State Boundary \ District Boundary P.S Boundary NH-31 National-Highway Railway line, M.G River • P.S Heodquarters © Stote Highway SH-IOA ee^lo E Contents Political Map af North (Uttar) Din^pw Preface i-ii Introduction 1-5 Antiquities in the Police Stations .„ 5-6 Chapter One North Dinajpur: A Geographical Outline 7-10 Chapter Two Early History of Dinajpur 11-13 Early Explorations 14-15 Chapter Three Police Station Chopra: A General Description 16 Naknahar, Narayanpur, Hussain Dighi 16-18 An important Metal Image from OjopraPolice Station 18-19 Images ofNandiganj 19 Police stations Goalpokhar and Chakulia: A General Description.... 20 Asuragarh ; 21-22 The Image of Manasa 22 A Metallic Image from Chakulia P.S 23 Islampur Police Station: A General Description 24 The Buddha Image, Visnu Image and Manasa Image 25-26 Antiquities in High School 26 Ruins of Durgabari 26 Visnu Image from Patagora 27-28 Inscribed Visnu Image (i) 29-30 Inscribed Visnu Image (ii) 30 Visnu Image (iii) 31 lconofSiva-Parvati(i) 31-32 Siva Parvati (ii) 32 Ganesa 32-33 Karandighi Police Station : A General Description 34 Bricks of Kshetrabari 34 The Antiquities of Paniha 35 Images from Karandighi Police Station 35-37 Police Station Raiganj: A General Description 38 Bindol 39-40 The Image of Bhairavi 40 The Ruins of Baliyadighi 40-41 Tenahari 42 Visnu Image 42-43 DasavatoraVisnu 43-44 Narasinha Avatara „ 44 The stone Pillar 45 Archaeological Findings from Kamajora 46-47 TombofHussainShahAtMirual 47-48 lajpxir 49-51 Panchbhaiya 51 Archaeological Specimen from Khoksa-Astal 51-52 Images Preserved in Raiganj P.S 53-61 Manasa 53 The Image of Yamuna 54 Ganesa 55 The Image of Chamunda 56 Boar Inaamation 57 The Icon of Avalokitesvara 58 Visnu Image 58-59 Inscribed Visnu 59-60 Siva-Parvati 60-61 Visnu Image 61 Itahar Police Station: A General Description 62 DurgapurRaj Palace 62-63 The Temple at Hasua 63 Vamana Visnu 64 Dancing Ganesa 65 Manasa Image 66 Archaeological Findings from Sonapur 67-69 Images from Kukurakunda 69-72 Visnu Image 70 The Image of Ganga 71 Image of the Bodhisattva Padmapani 71-72 Surya Image 72 The Antique of Porsa 73 Khamrua 74 Surya Image 74 NavagrahaPanel 75 Archaeological Findings from Patirajpur 75-76 Visnu Image 76 Antiquity of Amavati 11-1% Visnu Image „, 78 A Jaina Column 78 Police Station Hemtabad: A General Description 79 Kamalabari and Radiba-Mahasho 79-83 Baharail 84 Ganesa 84 Image from Kothagram 84-85 Police Station Kaliyaganj : A General Description 86-87 Visnulmage 87-88 Manasa Image 88 References 89-94 Chapter Four Conclusion 95-103 References 104-105 Bibliography 106-108 List of Maps and Documents Table 1 : List of hnages 109-111 Table2 : List of Important Places 112-114 List of Images in Raiganj Police Station 115 List oflmages in Itahar Police Station 116 List of Images in Islampur Police Station 117 Archaeological Map of North (Uttar) Dinajpur Map showing settlement sites Map of Un-divided Dinajpur Prefiace ^The Archaeological probings in the District of North (Uttar) Dinajpur^^ is the result of five years of extensive and exhaustive field survey that I had undertaken under the guidance of Dr. M.andira BhaUiuharya, Department of History, North Bef^sd University. The District of Uttar Dinajpur is one oftheyowagestin West Bengal that has emerged in the beginning of the last decade of the 20th Century. Thtr^h the district is archaeologically potentmi, mmry scholars are of the opinion that the proposed area is outside of the periphery of ancient Bengal, remaining as a frontier state. Obviously a little attempt has been made to unearth its archaeological potentials. But the iconographic specimen found in large numbers in different parts of the district opens up vast possibilities of research. This has attracted my attention and hence the task has been taken to bring into limelight those untapped and unknown historical places. Consequently, the thesis^alter the archaeological map of the district which may add important historical data to the History of Bengal. This will therefore, serve as an important source material for future study, to help the students of history, researchers and teachers of the historical source materials lying in different parts of the region. I owe a deep sense of gratitude to Mrs. Mandira Bhattacharya, Deptt. of History North Bengal University, whose learned guidance in conducting this research work is an immense source of energy. It is she who for the first time has exposed the importance of the area and aroused my interest. lam really thankful to Sri Shovan Dutta, an unemployed graduate and photographer who through out the years has accompanied me in my field survey and removed my solitude in unknown lands. [i] The Police Superintendent of the District and the Officers-in~Charge in different police stations have earned my thanks by supplying data on images kept in thme stations and alUming me to take photographs of those precious historical objects. I thank my wife Smt. Sangita Ghosh who always revived my spirits by giving mental support and later on extending financial support in conducting and printing my thesis. I shall always remember with gratitude the assistance of the Library ofN.B. U. and therefore, owe to all the staff of the Library. I must mention the learned advice of Dr. Himangshu Sarkar, former lecturer of Kaliyaganj College and Dr Af.M. Jana, Deptt. of Geography, North Bengal University. lam alsogratejul to my Principal, Major B. K. Jha, Army School Bengdubi for permitting me to conduct this work. Lastly, I must say that despite all the care taken, a few errors may have crept into the printing, but I am sure that the merit of this thesis will compensate for such errors. Opp. 2nd Gate Smarajit Ghosh North Bengal University 2)0(1^ '!A^y2000. [ii] Introduction Since Independence my parents had migrated to India and roamed the different parts of the newly created West Bengal and ultimately setded in Raiganj, now the district headquarters of North Dinajpur, West Bengal. The town, then a tiny one, is now gradually becoming important as a commercial and political centre. A lot of building activities is taking place in Kamajora and the town is s^vly moving towards north. My interest in this study of the archaeological materials of the district developed with the frequent discovery of antiquities from the town itself and the adjacent areas. Since boyhood days I have heard of discoveries of antiquities by the local people while digging ponds. As a school boy I did have the opportunity or permission to see and visit these icons. While conducting my exploration in recent times I have enquired about these discoveries and found no suitable answer from the authority or local inhabitants from where the images had been found. The disappearance of rich heritage of the district and the negligence of the authority to preserve the antiquities gave me a grave shock. Therefore, later on, as a student of early medieval history of India, I always desired to bring into the notice of the scholarly world the hitherto unnoticed invaluable antiquities from the area, and hereby appeal to both district and state authorities to take necessary action for the preservation of these items. I was very much impressed by G.S. Sardesai's account. A couple of decades ago he wrote, "...just as Indian pohtics of the ftiture can no longer remain isolated or confined to each communal unit, so the history of Indian nation of the fiiture is going to be a united whole in which individual units will merge themselves. Such a history has to take note of the strong and week points, of the services and disservices of every separate community, creed or caste and has to mould them into a solid unity, in which all can take pride and which will supply to all important and useful lesson derived from past experience"' My interest in local history developed this way. For the last few years I have been traversing the district from one comer to the other hunting the interior areas hitherto untapped by the historians and sought for archaeological remains. [1] I have tried to collect as much evidence as possible from the various sites. However, inspite of my best efforts to cover all, I might have missed a few unknowingly. Throughout my survey, I have limited my search mainly on the early periods of history. The evidence is mainly from surface and chance discoveries of antiquities. It may be mentioned here that no excavation was ever been und«tek«i in any site of the district. Though the district has a glorious past and is very rich in archaeological remains carry imprints of the past. The places of historical interest are not rare.Menl;ion may be made of Asuragarh, Sonapur, and Aaaas^i etc. Artefacts have been found from different places of the district. Local people having deep interest in history and its culture strove their best in publishing articles in little magazines and local newspapers to draw the attention of the concemed higher authority.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Sculptures of the Goddesses Manasā Discovered from Dakshin Dinajpur District of West Bengal: an Iconographic Study
    International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention (IJHSSI) ISSN (Online): 2319 – 7722, ISSN (Print): 2319 – 7714 www.ijhssi.org ||Volume 10 Issue 4 Ser. I || April 2021 || PP 30-35 Sculptures of the Goddesses Manasā Discovered from Dakshin Dinajpur District of West Bengal: An Iconographic Study Dr Rajeswar Roy Assistant Professor of History M.U.C. Women’s College (Affiliated to The University of Burdwan) Rajbati, Purba-Bardhaman-713104 West Bengal, India ABSTRACT: The images of various sculptures of the goddess Manasā as soumya aspects of the mother goddess have been unearthed from various parts of Dakshin Dinajpur District of West Bengal during the early medieval period. Different types of sculptural forms of the goddess Manasā are seen sitting postures have been discovered from Dakshin Dinajpur District during the period of our study. The sculptors or the artists of Bengal skillfully sculpted to represent the images of the goddess Manasā as snake goddess, sometimes as Viṣahari’, sometimes as ‘Jagatgaurī’, sometimes as ‘Nāgeśvarī,’ or sometimes as ‘Siddhayoginī’. These artistic activities are considered as valuable resources in Bengal as well as in the entire world. KEYWORDS: Folk deity, Manasā, Sculptures, Snake goddess, Snake-hooded --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date of Submission: 20-03-2021 Date of Acceptance: 04-04-2021 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. INTRODUCTION Dakshin Dinajpur or South Dinajpur is a district in the state of West Bengal, India. It was created on 1st April 1992 by the division of the erstwhile West Dinajpur District and finally, the district was bifurcated into Uttar Dinajpur and Dakshin Dinajpur. Dakshin Dinajpur came into existence after the division of old West Dinajpur into North Dinajpur and South Dinajpur on 1st April, 1992.
    [Show full text]
  • Environmental and Ecological Change: Gleanings from Copperplate Inscriptions of Early Bengal
    Indian Journal of History of Science, 54.1 (2019) 119-124 DOI: 10.16943/ijhs/2019/v54i1/49606 Project Report Environmental and Ecological Change: Gleanings from Copperplate Inscriptions of Early Bengal Rajat Sanyal INTRODUCTION of the Vaga region (6th century CE); Candra and Varman kings (9th–10th century CE) Historically defined, the geographical orbit of Bengal (comprising present Indian state of West • Southeastern Bengal: Copperplate of Bengal and the independent Republic of Vainyagupta from Comilla (5th century CE); Bangladesh) witnessed the consolidation of human Deva, Rāta and Khaga kings from Comilla settlements of the historical phase from almost the (7th–8th century CE) and Copperplates of Deva middle of the first millennium BCE. It is from the kings of Comilla-Noakhali (13th century CE) third century BCE level that proper archaeological The above classificatory scheme vindicates five and epigraphic evidence from some parts of the geochronological ‘categories’ in the inscriptional region show the growth and expansion of large corpus of Bengal: the Gupta plates of fifth–sixth scale urban settlements. centuries, the post-Gupta plates of sixth century The geographical and chronological distri- hailing from eastern and southwestern Bengal, bution of copperplate inscriptions of early Bengal those of the local lineages of sixth–eight centuries, clearly suggest the four different geographical plates of the Pāla and their contemporaries of sectors from which they were issued. These are: eighth–twelfth centuries and those of the Sena and a. northern Bengal, b. western-southwestern their subordinates of twelfth–thirteenth centuries. Bengal, c. eastern Bengal and d. southeastern The primary methodology followed in this Bengal.
    [Show full text]
  • Shiura-Cowries-2017.Pdf
    Mongolia 32 Munkhtulga Rinchinkhorol Protection of Cultural Heritage in Urban Areas in Mongolia: The Tonyukuk Complex Nepal 39 Suresh Suras Shrestha Post Earthquake Conservation, Reconstruction and Rehabilitation in Nepal: Current Status New Zealand 44 Matthew Schmidt Heritage on the Move: The preservation of William Gilbert Rees ca. 1864 Meat Shed Pakistan 50 Tahir Saeed A Recent Study of the Individual Buddha Stone Sculptures from Gandhara, Pakistan Philippines 56 Louella Solmerano Revilla Restoration of the Roman Catholic Manila Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica Sri Lanka 62 D.A. Rasika Dissanayaka Vee bissa and Atuwa: Earthen Structures for Storing Granary in Ancient Sri Lanka Uzbekistan 66 Akmal Ulmasov Preliminary Results of Archaeological Researches in the Karatepa Buddhist Center (in 2014-2015) Vanuatu 70 Richard Shing Identifying Potential Archaeological Sites on a Polynesian Outlier – Preliminary Archaeological Survey on Futuna Bangladesh Bangladesh Especial Type of Ancient Pottery — Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW) — Obtained from Mahasthangarh (Ancient Pundranagara) Archaeological Site and Its Chronological Study Mst. Naheed Sultana, Regional Director Department of Archaeology, Ministry of Cultural Affairs, People’s Republic of Bangladesh Introduction: Clay or mud is a very ordinary thing, and is thickened grooved rim. There was very fine fabric, with a simply a covering of earth. This earth has been used for grey and black core and well levigated. Both surfaces were different works since 10,000 years ago (Singh 1979:1). For very smooth, and were black slipped, red slipped and our existence in the world, in our daily work, in religious, polished. cultural, and political works and royal orders, clay has been the greatest and most invaluable material.
    [Show full text]
  • CHANDRAKETUGARH – Rediscovering a Missing Link in Indian History
    CHANDRAKETUGARH – rediscovering a missing link in Indian history (Project Codes AIB and GTC) A synoptic collation of three research by the SandHI Group INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY KHARAGPUR Patron-Advisor Ms. Amita Sharma Advisor to HRM, MHRD, Government of India Former Additional Secretary (Technical), MHRD, Government of India Advisor Prof. Partha P. Chakrabarti Director, IIT Kharagpur Monitoring Cell Prof. Sunando Dasgupta Dean, Sponsored Research and Consultancy Cell, IIT Kharagpur Prof. Pallab Dasgupta Associate Dean, Sponsored Research and Consultancy Cell, IIT Kharagpur Principal Investigator (overall) Prof. Joy Sen Department of Architecture & Regional Planning, IIT Kharagpur Vide order no. F. NO. 4-26/2013-TS-1, Dt. 19-11-2013 (36 months w.e.f 15-1-2014 and 1 additional year for outreach programs) Professor-in-Charge Documentation and Dissemination Prof. Priyadarshi Patnaik Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, IIT Kharagpur Research Scholars Group (Coordinators) Sunny Bansal, Vidhu Pandey, Prerna Mandal, Arpan Paul, Deepanjan Saha Graphics Support Tanima Bhattacharya, Sandhi Research Assistant, SRIC, IIT Kharagpur ISBN: 978-93-80813-37-0 © SandHI A Science and Heritage Initiative, IIT Kharagpur Sponsored by the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Government of India Published in September 2015 www.iitkgpsandhi.org Design & Printed by Cygnus Advertising (India) Pvt. Ltd. 55B, Mirza Ghalib Street 8th Floor, Saberwal House, Kolkata - 700016 www.cygnusadvertising.in Disclaimer The information present in the Report offers the views of the authors and not of its Editorial Board or the publishers. No party involved in the preparation of material contained in SandHI Report represents or warrants that the information contained herein is in every respect accurate or complete and they are not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such material.
    [Show full text]
  • FORTS of INDIA Anurit Vema
    FORTS OF INDIA Anurit Vema *'9^7” \ < > k M' . J . i <• : » I : *='>- >.% ' nvjl •I' 4 V FORTS OF INDIA ■ \ f 0i''. ■ V'; ’ V, , ’' I* ;■'; -r^/A ci''> Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2018 with funding from Public.Resource.org https ;//archive.org/details/fortsofindiaOOverm JAMkJ AND KASHMIR FORTS OF INDIA HARIPARBAT "■^Arot kangraW ( HIMACHAL\ ( .' V.PRADESH\ r PUNJAB S', i /kalibangM ■'HARYANA > ARUNACHAL PRADESH ®BIKANER \ A/ D. AMBEr'f-X UTTAR PRADESH^-'... ® RAJASTHAN ® X BHUTAN "'^JAISALMER BHARATPUR’^A--^,@i®/lGPA JODHPUR /^^f^ji^^i^gff^j^^®^ BWALIOR J ALLAHABAD ROHTASGARH MEGHALAYA 'KUMBHALGARH % (\ \ ®\ .0 n.1 , ^•‘-fCHUHAR BANGLADESH TRIPURA f AHtAADABAD ■> WEST C !■ r'^' BENGALI, ® .^XHAMPANIR MADHYA PRADESH FORT WILLIAM A RAT /rOABHOlV ®MANDU BURMA DAULATABAD MAHARASHTRA ^AHMEDNABAR SHJVNER ARABIAN SEA mSINHGARH l\i,' WARANGAL 1, bay of BENGAL RAIGARH . /“ < GULBARGA GOLKUNOA PANHALA BIJAPUR JANDHRA PRADESH VUAYANAGAR iKARNATAKA| '^RJRANGAPATAM m GINGEEi LAKSHADWEEP (INDIA) SRI \ INDIAN OCEAN LANKA 6aMd upon Survey ol India outline map printed in 1980 The territorial waters of India extend into the sea to a distance of twelve nautical miles measured from the appropriate base line. ) Government of India copyrliht. The twundary of Meghalaya shown on this map is as interpreted from the Nonh-Eestern Areas (Reorgamaaiion) Act, 1971. but has yet to be venlied 49 FORTS OF INDIA AMRIT VERMA PUBLICATIONS DIVISION MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING GOVERNMENT OF INDIA May 1985 {Jyaistha 1907) ® Publications Division Price
    [Show full text]
  • The Bengalis: a Thousand Years
    Bengalis Thousand Years 8670/ 021116 The BengAlis: A ThousAnd YeArs Jawhar Sircar The last few days of a century that also happen to be at the end of a whole millennium, are bound to stir a strange excitement in even the most placid person. The two most expected feelings that hold their sway can perhaps be summarized as: introspection and expectation — drawing a balance sheet of the past as also trying to gauge what the future holds. Such an exercise can cover not only a single person or his immediate concerns; it may as well cover his locality, his state or nation and may be stretched to entire humanity. The constraints of my acquaintance and knowledge hardly qualify me to scan any group higher or bigger than my own people: the Bengalis. Even in this, my limitations now plague me more than my enthusiasm to try out such a review — but these notwithstanding; the sheer thrill of initiating an animated adda on the subject overpowers me. At the beginning, let me make it clear that I do not have the audacity to try to cover a thousand years in just a few pages: hence I will concentrate only on certain significant periods or issues, for the sake of presenting a viewpoint. So let us begin: are the Bengalis a thousand years old? Or even more? Historians tell us about our history during the Pala- Sena period, which would give us about 1250 years to be proud of, but if we include the great Sasanka, we could be share-holders in a great concern that goes back fourteen centuries.
    [Show full text]
  • Copper Parchment & Stone
    COPPER PARCHMENT & STONE Edited by John Reuben Davies & Swapna Bhattacharya Copper, Parchment, and Stone Studies in the sources for landholding and lordship in early medieval Bengal and medieval Scotland edited by John Reuben Davies and Swapna Bhattacharya University of Glasgow Ionad Eòlas na h-Alba is na Ceiltis| Centre for Scottish and Celtic Studies GLASGOW 2019 © The Contributors 2019 All rights reserved The moral rights of the authors have been asserted ISBN-10: 085261957X ISBN-13: 9780852619575 Published by Centre for Scottish and Celtic Studies, University of Glasgow, 1 University Gardens, Glasgow, G12 8QQ Contibutors Swapna Bhattacharya Professor, Department of South and South East Asian History, University of Calcutta (retired 2017) Dauvit Broun Professor of Scottish History, School of Humanities, University of Glasgow John Reuben Davies Research Fellow in Scottish History, School of Humanities, University of Glasgow Suchandra Ghosh Professor, Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta Sayantani Pal Associate Professor, Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta Rajat Sanyal Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta Joanna Tucker Arts and Humanities Innovation Researcher (History), School of Humanities, University of Glasgow Contents Foreword 1 I Comparative diplomatic in the Latin West and early medieval Bengal: a brief overview Swapna Bhattacharya 15 II The forms and format of the copper-plate inscriptions of early Bengal Sayantani Pal 53 III The development of the charter in Scotland John Reuben Davies 69 IV Boundary clauses in Bengal inscriptions: revisiting sources Rajat Sanyal & Suchandra Ghosh 99 V Recording boundaries in Scottish charters in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries Joanna Tucker 151 VI Praśastis or panegyrics in early India: case studies from Bengal Suchandra Ghosh & Sayantani Pal 193 VII The genealogy of the king of Scots as charter and panegyric Dauvit Broun 209 Foreword When I was at sea last August, on my voyage to this country ..
    [Show full text]
  • An Account of the Process of Urbanization and Urban Development in North Bengal Before Independence
    Arvind Basak, IJSRR 2019, 8(2), 1919-1925 Research article Available online www.ijsrr.org ISSN: 2279–0543 International Journal of Scientific Research and Reviews An Account of the Process of Urbanization and Urban Development in North Bengal before Independence Arindam Basak Assistant Professor Department of Geography and Applied Geography University of North Bengal P.O –NBU, Dist – Darjeeling, Pin -734013 Email: [email protected],Ph: 9836549171. ABSTRACT: North Bengal comprise at present the eight districts of West Bengal viz. Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Koch Bihar, Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur and Maldah respectively. The urbanization process witnessed in North Bengal has been very scattered and a discontinuous one before independence. This resulted in a very low level of urbanization this region recorded at the time of independence and this legacy continued upto 2011. In this paper an attempt has been made to understand the political ups and downs this region experienced before independence and how this process affected the growth and flourishing of urban centres during those periods. KEY WORDS: North Bengal, History of Urbanization, Growth of Urban Centres. *Corresponding author: Arindam Basak Assistant Professor Department of Geography and Applied Geography University of North Bengal P.O –NBU, Dist – Darjeeling, Pin -734013 Email: [email protected],Ph: 9836549171. IJSRR, 8(2) April. – June., 2019 Page 1919 Arvind Basak, IJSRR 2019, 8(2), 1919-1925 INTRODUCTION With the primacy of Kolkata and other South Bengal cities and towns, urbanization in North Bengal appears lackluster. But a quick look at the history will show that urban centres and that too quite flourishing ones were present in North Bengal.
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction
    Introduction Since Independence my parents had migrated to India and roamed the different parts of the newly created West Bengal and ultimately setded in Raiganj, now the district headquarters of North Dinajpur, West Bengal. The town, then a tiny one, is now gradually becoming important as a commercial and political centre. A lot of building activities is taking place in Kamajora and the town is s^vly moving towards north. My interest in this study of the archaeological materials of the district developed with the frequent discovery of antiquities from the town itself and the adjacent areas. Since boyhood days I have heard of discoveries of antiquities by the local people while digging ponds. As a school boy I did have the opportunity or permission to see and visit these icons. While conducting my exploration in recent times I have enquired about these discoveries and found no suitable answer from the authority or local inhabitants from where the images had been found. The disappearance of rich heritage of the district and the negligence of the authority to preserve the antiquities gave me a grave shock. Therefore, later on, as a student of early medieval history of India, I always desired to bring into the notice of the scholarly world the hitherto unnoticed invaluable antiquities from the area, and hereby appeal to both district and state authorities to take necessary action for the preservation of these items. I was very much impressed by G.S. Sardesai's account. A couple of decades ago he wrote, "...just as Indian pohtics of the ftiture can no longer remain isolated or confined to each communal unit, so the history of Indian nation of the fiiture is going to be a united whole in which individual units will merge themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • Bibliography Part I: Primary Sources A
    Bibliography Part I: Primary Sources A. Inscription: I. Temple Inscription: Dinajpur (Bangarh) Stone Pillar Inscription: A Stone pillar 8‟4‟‟ in height, found at Bangarh in Dinajpur in Modern Bengal, bears a short inscription in Sanskrit, recording the erection of a Siva temple by a king of Kamboja family-Kunjaraghatavarsa. It helps in tracing the early history of the Koch. Rautkuchi Copper plate Inscription of Purushottamdasa. The inscription records the grants of village, Rautkuchi, near modern Nalbari in Kamrup district to a Brahmin, Dharmakanta, by a Bhuyan named Purushottamdasa in Saka 1251 (AD1329). It throws light on the political history of the Kamarupa kings who ruled before the Koch. The Hayagriiva Madhava Temple Inscription: The rebuilding of the temple by king Raghudeva Narayan in the Saka1505 has been engraved in this inscription. The Kamakshya Temple Inscription: This inscription has recorded the rebuilding of the Kamakshya temple by Malladeva (Nara Narayan) and Sukladhvja (Chilarai) in the Saka 1487. The KamatesvariTemple Inscription: The inscription in engraved in the temple of Kamatesvari has recorded its building by King Prana Naranan in the Saka 1587. The Pandunath Temple Inscription: This inscription has recoded the rebuilding of the Pandunath Temple by king Raghudeva in the Saka 1585. 236 II. Compiling and Edited Works on the Inscription: Bhattacharyya, P.N, (ed.): Kamarupa Sasanavali, Rangpur, Rangpur Sahitya Parisad, 1338 B.S. Neog, Maheswar (ed.): Prachya Sasanavali, Guwahati, Assam PrakashanParisad, 1974. Sharma, M.M., (ed.): Inscription of Ancient Assam, Guwahati, Guwahati University, 1978. B. Numismatic Collection: I. Collection of Sri Sankar Bose, Kolkata, Mr. Anup Mitra, Kolkata, Sri Jahar Srkar, Agartala, Md.
    [Show full text]
  • From Pure Copper to High–Tin Bronzes
    SUPERIOR COPPER METALLURGY OF EASTERN INDIA AND BANGLADESH IN MEDIEVAL PERIOD: FROM PURE COPPER TO HIGH–TIN BRONZES Prasanta K. Datta* Pranab K. Chattopadhyay* Introduction The history of East India and Bangladesh has been pushed back to Paleolithic, Chalcolithic and subsequent early historic times by the findings of archaeological excavations at Paharpur[1], Bangarh[2], Pandu Rajar Dhibi[3], Mangalkot[4], Mahasthan[5], Wari-Bateswar[6] and elsewhere around Singhbhum copper belt. Other than the mass of copper-bearing materials collected from the explored sites, very often a large number of copper tools, in caches, so called “copper hoards” have been obtained at places nearby. Whatever be the source, fortunately metals preserve their history of processing, of their chemical extraction and physical transformation, in their microstructures. Therefore, a study of their microstructures can predict their production processes, if assisted with suitable archaeological evidences of mines, slag, crucibles or molds. Characterisation of four copper samples taken from different sites in chronological order starting with in and around Christian era from 1st millennium B.C. to 1st millennium A.D. to reconstruct the remarkable development of copper metallurgy, in Eastern India and Bangladesh. 2.0 Description of samples 2.1 Fragment of a bar-celt, Khuntitoli, (Ranchi), Manbhum Copper hoard The fragment (Fig.1) is the cutting end of the bar-celt[7] used in scooping the earth of agricultural field, locally known as “khurpi”. This is a pure copper casting (99%) but full of gas holes and seems to be made in open molds with poor gating. The purity (over 99%) is an excellent example of pure copper, though melting and casting techniques deserve more improvement for good casting production.
    [Show full text]
  • Curriculum Vitae: Rupendra Kumar Chattopadhyay
    CURRICULUM VITAE: RUPENDRA KUMAR CHATTOPADHYAY I. Personal Details Name: Professor Rupendra Kumar Chattopadhyay Father‟s Name: Shri Karunamoy Chattopadhyay. Date of Birth : 19th February 1955 Gender : Male Nationality : Indian Permanent Address: P.O. & Vill- Palashdanga, Dist-Bankura (West Bengal). Address of Correspondence: Flat No-3A (3rd floor), 314 Maharani Indira Devi Road, Behala, Kolkata-700060, West Bengal, India. E-mail: [email protected] Phone No. (033) 2406-9175 (R) Mobile No. 09432888439; 9123312580 II. Education -B.A. (Hons) in History from University of Burdwan (1975). -M.A. in Archaeology from University of Calcutta (1977-1979). -M.Phil in History from University of Delhi (1982-1983). -Ph.D. from University of Burdwan (1990). 1 III. Employment From November 2015 to present: „Paresh Chandra Chatterjee Professor of History‟, Department of History, Presidency University. 2013-2015: Professor, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta. 2009-2013: Associate Professor, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta. 2006-2009: Reader, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta. 2000-2006: Lecturer, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta. 1982-2000: Curator (Museum), Archaeology and Museum Unit, Department of History, University of Delhi. IV: Visiting Fellowship: Visiting Fellow of Ancient India and Iran Trust (AIIT), Brooklands House, Cambridge, U.K. for the year 1997-1998. Title of the work: Report on a Study of Eastern Indian Art and Archaeology of Pala Sena Period (roughly c. 900 A.D. to 1200 A.D.). V: Field-work: 1978 – Participated (as a post graduate student of the Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta) in the excavation at the Chalcolithic site of Daimabad in Maharashtra with Archaeological Survey of India.
    [Show full text]