Bangladesh

In mid-15th century, a Muslim colony was founded in the inhospitable mangrove forest of the Sundarbans near the sea coast in the Bagerhat district by an obscure saint-General, named Ulugh Khan Jahan. He was the earliest torch bearer of islam in the South who laid the nucleus of an affluent city during the reign of Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah (1442-59), then known as 'khalifatabad' (present Bagerhat). Khan Jahan adorned his city with numberous mosques, tanks, roads and other public buildings, the spectacular ruins of which are focused around the most imposing and largest multidomed mosques in Bangladesh, known as the Shait-Gumbuj Masjid (160'xlO8'). The stately fabric of the monument, serene and imposing, stands on the eastern bank of an unusually vast sweet-water tank,clustered around by the heavy foliage of a low-laying countryside, characteristic of a sea-coast landscape.The mosque roofed over with 77 squat domes, including 7 chauchala or four-sided Pitched Bengali domes in the middle row. The vast prayer hall, although provided with 11arched doorways on east and 7 each on north and south for ventilation and light, presents a dark and sombre appearance inside. It is divided into 7 longitudinal aisles and 11 deep days by a forest of slender stone columns, from which springs rows of endless arches, supporting the domes. Six feet thick, slightly tapering walls and hollow and round, almost detached corner towers, resembling the bastions of fortress, each capped by small rounded cupolas, recall the Tughlaq architecture of Delhi. The general appearance of this noble monument with its stark simplicity but massive character reflects the strongth and simplicity of the builder.

Bangladesh is a country considerably rich in archaeological wealth, especially of the medieval period both during the Muslim and pre-Muslim rules, though most of it is still unexplored and unknown. In archaeological fieldwork and research this area was very much neglected for a long time for various reasons, not the least of which are its difficult geography and climate and remoteness from the main centers of the subcontinent. With the independence of Bangladesh in 1971 the Government has undertaken a number of field projects including a comprehensive survey and exploration of the hitherto unexplored areas and a fairly ambitious scheme of excavations on selected sites. Though work at present is carried out on a limited scale, the discoveries already made have been significant, while new information and fresh evidence are coming out gradually. These fresh explorations are likely to add substantially to our knowledge of the history and chronology of ancient Bangladesh and various aspects of her life and culture.The earlier history of Bangladesh reveals that Buddhism received royal patronage from some important ruling dynasties like the great Pala rulers, the Chandras and the Deva Kings. Under their royal patronage numerous well-organized, self-contained monasteries sprang up all over the country. The major archaeological sites are described below.