Bangladesh is an ancient country. Bengal is known all over the world for its history and antiquity of thousands of years of struggle. Our Bengali civilization has been enriched by the footsteps of many nations including Aryans, Mughals, English and Portuguese. With the passage of time, many additions and deletions have taken place in our culture and way of life. We find the history of this evolution of Bengal in many valuable ancient texts, poems, novels and manuscripts. Another notable medium that introduces us to the ancient way of life is our antiquities. These antiquities paint a picture of the politics, economy and society of ancient Bengal. These are the burning proofs of our roots and existence.
*Location of antiquities in Bangladesh:
Most of the antiquities in Bangladesh were built mainly during the Muslim and pre-Muslim eras. When various religions began to develop and different nations began to colonize ancient Bengal. Geographical location, communication facilities, fertile soil and the resources of this country attract many people to live in this country. Their way of life, culture, culture merges with us at once. Many buildings were built in Bengal for the development of religion and for the convenience of living and for the sake of governing the country. Most of the antiquities of Bengal are located in Rajshahi, Khulna, Comilla, Natore, Sonargaon, Dinajpur, Tangail, Jessore etc. In fact, there are many more patterns scattered all over Bengal. Many ancient glories are being lost due to lack of identification and preservation.
*Types of antiquities in Bangladesh:
In the Muslim and pre-Muslim eras, culture flowed in different streams during the reigns of kings of different religions. This flowing stream inspires the lives of ordinary people. The influence of religion is reflected in our antiquities. When the Buddhist Pala kings ruled Bengal for a long time before the Sena kings, their sculpture and architecture flourished. Most of these sculptures and architectural works are monasteries, ashrams and Buddhist temples, which give us an idea of the development of Buddhism at that time. The influence of Hinduism can be seen in the buildings that were built from the time of the Sena kings to the pre-Muslim period. However, the temples in Bengal were built in imitation of the ordinary houses of rural Bengal. The construction style and decoration of these temples reflected the nobility and greatness of Hinduism. In the Muslim era, kings and emperors have given a lot of patronage to spread Islam. Many mosques, forts were built at this time. Mosaics, murals, marble latticework, carved walls, doors, arches, angular and semi-circular roofs, geometric designs, all feature antiquities of the Muslim era.
*Antiquities of Paharpur:
The ashram built at Paharpur in Rajshahi in the Buddhist era is now a lot of ruins. From this ruin we find some antiquities of that era. It is known from the earthen seal that this Sompur Vihara was built during the reign of Palaraja Dharmapala. It was the largest monastery in the south of the Himalayas. The north-south monastery is 922 feet and the east-west is 919 feet. This quadrangular monastery has 16 rooms. The Paharpur Ashram was established on 22 acres of land. Outside it was surrounded by a wall 18 feet thick. There were 16 rooms on the wall. Each was 14 feet 13 1/2 inches in size. In front of the rooms was a 9-foot-wide veranda. The height of the ashram was 72 feet and it was built on three levels. The wall by which the ashram was surrounded was adorned with 63 stone statues. The impression of Brahmanism was evident in these idols. Moreover, the predominance of terracotta industry in the construction style of this ashram is very noticeable. Excavations have uncovered 2,000 terracotta painting plates. Moreover, the temple, the Buddhist monastery, the Vita of Satyapir some distance from the ashram, the copperplate on the plate, the bronze statues and all the antiquities are the symbols of Paharpur's tradition and glory. The prosperity here is described by the Chinese tourists Fa-Hien and Hiuen Tsang.
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