Description of the attraction
Mahasthangarh is one of the earliest urban archaeological sites found in Bangladesh. The village of Mahastan in the Bogra region contains the remains of an ancient city called Pundranagara or Paundravardhanapura.
Remains of a limestone slab with a six-line inscription, discovered in 1931, date this structure to the third century BC, and the fortress was inhabited and used for its intended purpose until the 18th century AD. Together with ancient and medieval ruins, a majar (tomb) of the Shah-Sultan Balkhi Mahisavar was found here, built on the site of a Hindu temple. He was a dervish from a royal family who spread Islam among non-Muslims.
The first mention of Mahastan was found in a Sanskrit text from the 13th century, it also had another name - the province of Pundranagara, the city of Pundras. According to documents dated 1685, it was an administrative center, a well-fortified city. The archaeological find was discovered in 1808 by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton.
The location on a hill (15-25 m above the surrounding territory) and the deep-flowing Karatoya River nearby gave the fortress city undeniable advantages in defense. Excavations of the citadel, begun in 1920, made it possible to see the wide and high walls stretching 1,523 kilometers from north to south and 1,371 kilometers from east to west. The total area of the fortress is approximately 185 hectares. At the beginning of archaeological work, the walls and ramparts looked like mountains of mud with holes at several points, a tomb on the southeast side. Later, a mosque of 1718-1719 was discovered. the buildings.
Today in Mahasthangarh you can see the ruins of ancient shrines, palaces and burials of people significant for the city, there were also found: a stone statue of Buddha transported from the Vasua Vihara monastery, coins, pottery shards, terracotta memorial plaques, images of bronze Ganesha and Garuda. The foundations of a 15-domed mosque (15-16th century) were found. Many finds are on display in the local museum.
Getting to Mahasthangarh is easier from Bogra, it is located just 11 km. The way from Dhaka will take 4, 5 hours with a crossing over the river over the bridge. Archaeological work is carried out here to this day, this city is one of the candidates for the list of UNESCO protected sites.
