Present Location-
Country-India
State- West Bengal
District-Howrah
Block-Bagnan-II
Nearby cities: Uluberia, Bagnan
Coordinates: 22°26'16"N 88°0'0"E
I doubt that anyone except the people from Howrah District would have heard about the village Harinarayanpur near Bagnan, but once upon a time it was a major township and a vastly populated area. Archaeological excavation from this site reveals an untold story of the past - a different era. Excavated objects give us an idea of the dress, ornaments and daily life style of the population of Bengal during a different historical period. Renowned scholar late Tarapada Santra for the first time enlightened us about the glory of this place and preserved those excavated things which were mainly excavated by Umakanta Raychoudhury, in the museum Ananda Niketan which, today, is one of the popular attractions of the Howrah District.
Mainly in the time of Mauriya, Gupta and Pala-sena dynasty, Tamralipta was one of the most important ports and gateways for maritime trade. Locationwise Harinarayanpur was situated near port Tamralipta. Due to scarcity of drinking water in port area, the traders from different locations from and across the country gathered near Harinarayanpur for collecting drinking water and exchanging their goods. So this place was always crowded with people, bazaar, temples of local deity, residential houses etc. A well as a source of drinking water was found during excavation which was traced back to that period. This was the example of a well-clustered configuration site in Gangetic regions. Many historians like Ram Sharan Sharma tried to prove that in early medieval period, the economy of India was mainly agriculture-based stagnant economy which failed to generate any commercial relations in terms of internal or external trade but exploration of this site reflects another picture, that, in the later or post Gupta era, Indian economy was not feudal and there is also evidence of external trade and activities of merchants through Tamralipta and the newly emerged Saptagram port. Through excavation, different types of Vishnu murti from 10th century were found which prove that it was a land of Vishnu worshipers (the vaishnavites) and many people believed that it was the another reason behind the name of Harinarayanpur. In Bagnan another Vishnu image of Pala-Sena period was found at Mellak. Also, an image of Chamunda was found at Mankur that belonged to the same period. A fragmented Surya image was found in Bainan, which again is part Bagnan region. This area witnessed so many installations of stone images as objects of worship in Pala-Sena age as a result of Vaishnavite influence.
During Pala-Sena age another rectangular shaped stone plate with engraved idol of Mahisashurmardini was found which was identified as a symbol of culture of the 14th-15thcentury. Debala Mitra of The Archaeological survey of India found early historical pottery, sprinklers, cast copper coin and some semi precious stone beds in this region. Terracotta objects, Mauriyan sculpture made of small pieces of limestone from the period of Maurya-Sunga-Kusan (C.3rd Cent. B.C. To 3r Cent A.D.) were also found. Many of these figures symbolized skillful depictions of female forms known as Yakshinis or nymphs, birds etc. There is clear evidence of maritime or external trade specially Indo-Roman Trade which was found from the archaeological analysis. During that time, terracotta objects were modeled on Roman statuaries. From this site, a number of terracotta heads decorated with laurel wreaths were excavated. This were similar to Roman sculptures that signify that Roman culture influenced the local culture and lifestyle of Bengal which may be assumed as the result of Indo-Roman trade. Other crucial findings were brick plate inscriptions which were claimed by many historians as ancient Bengali font but till now no one has been able to read the inscriptions properly. A little elephant idol was found which is similar to an idol of rhino - excavated from the riverside of Tigris and Euphrates. A triangle shaped green colored Neolithic Celt was also found at the excavation site. It is an indication of existence of pre-historic civilization. These traces of antiquities, stone sculptures, and fragments of architectural components, potteries and terracotta mainly from the pre-historic, ancient and early medieval period provide us with unique glimpse into the past of Bengal as well as the rich culture and heritage from an era long forgotten.
References -
Country-India
State- West Bengal
District-Howrah
Block-Bagnan-II
Nearby cities: Uluberia, Bagnan
Coordinates: 22°26'16"N 88°0'0"E
I doubt that anyone except the people from Howrah District would have heard about the village Harinarayanpur near Bagnan, but once upon a time it was a major township and a vastly populated area. Archaeological excavation from this site reveals an untold story of the past - a different era. Excavated objects give us an idea of the dress, ornaments and daily life style of the population of Bengal during a different historical period. Renowned scholar late Tarapada Santra for the first time enlightened us about the glory of this place and preserved those excavated things which were mainly excavated by Umakanta Raychoudhury, in the museum Ananda Niketan which, today, is one of the popular attractions of the Howrah District.
Mainly in the time of Mauriya, Gupta and Pala-sena dynasty, Tamralipta was one of the most important ports and gateways for maritime trade. Locationwise Harinarayanpur was situated near port Tamralipta. Due to scarcity of drinking water in port area, the traders from different locations from and across the country gathered near Harinarayanpur for collecting drinking water and exchanging their goods. So this place was always crowded with people, bazaar, temples of local deity, residential houses etc. A well as a source of drinking water was found during excavation which was traced back to that period. This was the example of a well-clustered configuration site in Gangetic regions. Many historians like Ram Sharan Sharma tried to prove that in early medieval period, the economy of India was mainly agriculture-based stagnant economy which failed to generate any commercial relations in terms of internal or external trade but exploration of this site reflects another picture, that, in the later or post Gupta era, Indian economy was not feudal and there is also evidence of external trade and activities of merchants through Tamralipta and the newly emerged Saptagram port. Through excavation, different types of Vishnu murti from 10th century were found which prove that it was a land of Vishnu worshipers (the vaishnavites) and many people believed that it was the another reason behind the name of Harinarayanpur. In Bagnan another Vishnu image of Pala-Sena period was found at Mellak. Also, an image of Chamunda was found at Mankur that belonged to the same period. A fragmented Surya image was found in Bainan, which again is part Bagnan region. This area witnessed so many installations of stone images as objects of worship in Pala-Sena age as a result of Vaishnavite influence.
During Pala-Sena age another rectangular shaped stone plate with engraved idol of Mahisashurmardini was found which was identified as a symbol of culture of the 14th-15thcentury. Debala Mitra of The Archaeological survey of India found early historical pottery, sprinklers, cast copper coin and some semi precious stone beds in this region. Terracotta objects, Mauriyan sculpture made of small pieces of limestone from the period of Maurya-Sunga-Kusan (C.3rd Cent. B.C. To 3r Cent A.D.) were also found. Many of these figures symbolized skillful depictions of female forms known as Yakshinis or nymphs, birds etc. There is clear evidence of maritime or external trade specially Indo-Roman Trade which was found from the archaeological analysis. During that time, terracotta objects were modeled on Roman statuaries. From this site, a number of terracotta heads decorated with laurel wreaths were excavated. This were similar to Roman sculptures that signify that Roman culture influenced the local culture and lifestyle of Bengal which may be assumed as the result of Indo-Roman trade. Other crucial findings were brick plate inscriptions which were claimed by many historians as ancient Bengali font but till now no one has been able to read the inscriptions properly. A little elephant idol was found which is similar to an idol of rhino - excavated from the riverside of Tigris and Euphrates. A triangle shaped green colored Neolithic Celt was also found at the excavation site. It is an indication of existence of pre-historic civilization. These traces of antiquities, stone sculptures, and fragments of architectural components, potteries and terracotta mainly from the pre-historic, ancient and early medieval period provide us with unique glimpse into the past of Bengal as well as the rich culture and heritage from an era long forgotten.
References -
- Banglar Bhaskarja - Dr. Kalyan Kumar Gangopadhaya
- Anandam - Tarapada Santra
- Howrah in Perspective Tradition & Culture - Kalyan Kumar Ganguli
Indrani Mazumdar
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