Site Conservation Assessment V2.0
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© Global Heritage Fund 2011 Site Conservation Assessment v2.0 Thank you for undertaking this Site Conservation Assessment. Please note the following: • You may need to create extra rows in the form by clicking in any cell in the bottom row of a box and selecting ‘Table’ > ‘Insert’ > ‘Rows Below’ in the Word menu bar running along the top of your window. • If important, relevant information is not directly solicited by the prompts provided, please address in the lowermost cell of each box, labelled “Further remarks”. • For lengthier responses (e.g. concerning condition and conservation details), type “see below” in the relevant box and append your observations to the end of the form, clearly labeled and organized. • Identify site components on a digital map or aerial photo. Photographically document the state of conservation for each component, keying photos to their location on a map or aerial image and providing informative captions. 1. General Information Date 25th may 2011. Site Name Ancient city of MAHASTHANGARH,BOGRA Country BANGLADESH Site Status __World Heritage Inscribed __WH Tentative __National Heritage Assessor Name Kawshik Saha Institution Faculty of Department of architecture, Shahjalal University of Science &Technology Profession Architect, Academic researcher Affiliations Institutes of Architect Bangladesh Date of site visit 20th-27th May,2011 Previous history with the site 1 © Global Heritage Fund 2011 Site Description Mahasthangarh (Bengali: মহাsানগড) is the earliest urban archaeological site so far discovered in Bangladesh. The village Mahasthan (250 words or less) in Shibganj thana of Bogra District. Mahasthan contains the remains of an ancient city which was called Pundranagara or Paundravardhanapura in the territory of Pundravardhana. Evidences date Mahasthangarh to at least the 3rd century BC. The fortified area was in use till the 18th century AD. The site was rightly identified by Sir Alexander Cunningham. The ancient kingdom of Punduru Bardhan was bordered by the Himalayas to the north, rivers Padma to the south, Korotoa to the east and Mahananda to the west. Seventh century Chinese traveler Huen Shang mentioned that the perimeter of “Punduru Bardhan” was 8 hundred miles. The Pundurus were destroyed as a result of the conquest by the Aryans. Punduru Bardhan broke up into five kingdoms one of which was called “Barendra” which was successively ruled by the Mauryas, the Guptas, the Pals, and the Sens and finally became part of the Muslim kingdom of Gaur. Archaeological stratigraphy from the Interim Report of the excavation conducted by the Bangladesh-France joint team has suggested, with the corroboration of the Radiocarbon dates that the earliest date goes back to the 4th-3rd century BCE. However, most of the area covered by the citadel is yet to be excavated. Besides, recent excavations at Vasu Bihara (a Buddhist monastery) and Bihar dhap (a mound) and Mazar area have revealed interesting cultural history in this part of undivided Bengal. Site Significance _The earliest urban archaeological site so far discovered in Bangladesh (250 words or less) _The excavations have revealed the cultural remains of various nature and periods ranging from 4th century BCE to 13/14th century AD. _ Is one of the most prominent ‘urban citadel site’ in South Asia. There are over hundred satellite sites in the form of mounds surrounding the main city fortified by a massive wall and rampart. _Structures built by burned mud brick and lime-brick dust mortar. _In a 2010 report titled Saving Our Vanishing Heritage Global Heritage Fund identified Mahasthangarh as one of 12 worldwide sites most "On the Verge" of irreparable loss and damage’. _A joint venture excavation program running by France-Bangladesh team each year. 2 © Global Heritage Fund 2011 2. Project Potential The following information is critical for GHF evaluation of how our scarce resources can most effectively employed. Planning Community What plans (e.g. Management, Conservation, Tourism Development, and Is there a nearby community that is or could be invested in preservation and tourism Disaster Preparedness) currently exist, and/or have been executed? development at the site? _For the site of Mahasthangarh Site, the authority responsible for conservation and site maintenance activities is Department of _The site of Mahasthan is located in a rural setting. Total area The ancient Archaeology, Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Bangladesh. city has now turned into several villages. _A local office of department of archaeology run by a management _The nearby community in and around Mahasthan is agrarian society. team Economic activities depend on agricultural production. Most of the inhabitants Under a site custodian, solely given authority to implement are farmer, fishermen. level of literacy is around 50%. conservation and management policies. _The local inhabitants are occupying most of the site. Most of them legally _The site custodian as a chief of staff at the site also runs the site own their property and others illegally built their settlement. museum, guest house and other site properties. _The community has become an essential part of the site. So without _The activities of site custodian office are monitored by Regional office participation of them sustainable preservation is near impossible. of archaeological department. _The site is the key source of income for most of the facilities living on and _Absence of any specific long term management planning around the site .So there are enormous scopes for investing nearby community in preservation and tourism development. _One year excavation plan is executed each year on availability of financial budget _No master plan for tourism support, inadequate arrangements like parking, canteen, accommodation. _Absence of any early threat monitoring or disaster preparedness 3 © Global Heritage Fund 2011 policy. Conservation Partnerships What are the paramount conservation problems and needs? What domestic and international, public and private organizations have the greatest _Destruction and looting by local inhabitants. potential as partners in preservation and tourism development at the site? _Illiteracy, poverty, neglect ion of local people. _environmental disaster like poor drainage, land erosion, over grown International Partnership: vegetation. The French –Government: Support a team of French archaeologist to take _Insufficient financial support by Government part in excavation in a period each year. _Absence of skilled conservation experts with site activities. No other international participation on the site. _ Lack of previous historic records on site. Domestic Participation: _Absence of well equipped research laboratory. Department of Archaeology, Ministry of cultural affairs ,Bangladesh No other public or private organizations in involved in conservation activity in What international conservation efforts have taken place? site. _Under an agreement between French and Bangladesh government, a French team taking part in a Joint Excavation Program each year for three months with Bangladesh team at Mahasthan since 1993. _No any other international efforts have taken place. 4 © Global Heritage Fund 2011 Further remarks: 3. Site Condition - Overview Emphasize recent (past 30 years) and ongoing changes in condition. Perceptual condition refers to elements such as visual intrusion, noise, encroachment of new constructions, crowding, commodification, etc. General Physical Condition General Perceptual Condition Site Mahasthan is located NW of Bangladesh, in the ancient of Bengal _Over growth population built modern habitation on site and around which formerly covered the present Bangladesh and the Indian West the site to create visual intrusion. Bengal. The city is established on the eastern edge of the Barindh high terrace, above the present alluvial plains of Ganges and the _Infrastructures constructed by Local government like vehicular Brahmaputra river. In contact with the high terraces, safe from roads, drainage, electric posts, and commercial markets surrounds flooding and with the old Tista alluvial plain, the site gain from most of the key structures. diversified ecological conditions which seem to have been well exploited in the past. Ancient testimonies describe this region in _Overgrowth vegetation often hides structures and mounds. terms of a granary. The Korotoya is the main river. It contributed to the irrigation of the site and was a major lane in the irrigational _The religious structure known as Mazar (tomb) focuses pilgrims all networks. over the country cause massive crowding in a part of site. That generates noise and disturbs security and safety. Mahasthan has become today a small village, run by district of Bogra without any specific neither administrative nor political function. Its main activity is agriculture. The ancient city of Mahasthangarh contains a citadel and structures around the citadel. There is nothing to justify today that a great city was developed in this precious place. Now a days, people of Mahasthsngarh is far away from the traditional route of past. Mahasthan’s outlying areas, excepting east, are interspersed with numbers of mounds, straggling vestiges of lost structures, 5 © Global Heritage Fund 2011 monasteries, temples, reservoirs and a citadel. All these are vivid evidences of a lost site hidden beneath the ruins of Mahasthan and its outskirts. Bangladesh archaeological department is the only authority here responsible for excavation and preserving ancient structures.