Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[name] => Balapur Zamindar House
[post_id] => 17404
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/balapur-zamindar-house/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Balapur-Zamindar-House-2-200x300.jpg
[post_content] =>
In different location of Narsingdi district there are a number of Archaeological sites which attract traveler and explorer to visit these places recurrently. Balapur Zamindar House (বালাপুর জমিদার বাড়ি) is one of the old palatial buildings in this district. If someone interested to visit the oldest buried civilization area in Bangladesh named as Wari-Bateshwar, then it would be better to take a glance at Balapur Zamindar House while moving there. It’s situated at Balapur village, Madhabdi Upazila of Narsingdi district.
This Zamindar House was built by local Zamindar named 'Nobin Chandra Saha' in 1906. It is also known as Zamindar Kali Babur Bari (কালী বাবুর বাড়ি). It’s a complex of buildings scattered in a particular zone. Basically, most of the buildings are three storied and some are one or two storied. Dept. of Archaeology in Bangladesh doesn’t announced it as a protected site yet. So like many others old houses in Bangladesh it is on the way of ruining.
No matter how decorative and ornamented this house is, it’s almost abandoned and some people who living in this house are so called ancestor of Zamindari estate at Balapur. Some local people are selling all the floor tiles made by white stone desperately.
But, Still today this beautiful palace standing with its own identity and spreading the essence of colonial palatial architecture in Bengal. If proper steps being taken this structure can be preserved & conserved for the future exhibiotion.
)
[1] => Array
(
[name] => Bandar Shahi Mosque
[post_id] => 10830
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/bandar-shahi-mosque/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Bondor-Shahi-Mosque-Narayanganj-021-225x300.jpg
[post_content] =>
Bandar Shahi Mosque (বন্দর শাহী মসজিদ ) is situated in the Bandar Municipal area. It was built in 1482 AD (886 AH) by Malik Al-Muazzam Baba Saleh, a high official under Sultan Jalaluddin Fateh Shah.
It is a square building measuring 6.20 meter a side in the interior and 9.70 meter in the exterior. It has four octagonal corner towers and a large hemispherical dome supported by two engaged black stone pillars embedded in each wall with square bases, capitals and octagonal shafts. The square inches which hold up the dome spring from the top of these pillars. The dome has a lotus and pitcher finial. The raising of the dome on a drum crowned with merlons seems to be part of Mughal renovations. There are three entrances in the east of which the central one is wider, measuring 2.20 meter high and 1.37 meter wide. The two other entrances each on the south and north sides are 2 meter high and 1 meter wide. The side entrances are of the same size as the front central one. Of the three semi-circular mihrabs, the central one is the largest and the northern mihrab is being used as a closet.
The mosque has been renovated and enlarged by verandas on the east, south and north sides. It is presently being used as a jami mosque.
)
[2] => Array
(
[name] => Sonakanda Fort
[post_id] => 10801
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/sonakanda-fort/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/17662494639_eac4172f39_b1-300x200.jpg
[post_content] =>
Sonakanda Fort (সোনাকান্দা দুর্গ) a Mughal river-fort located on the eastern bank of the Shitalakshya (শীতলক্ষ্যা) at port area. A group of river forts, constructed by the Mughals, guarded the water routes to Dhaka and other places of strategic importance and the Sonakanda Fort is one of them. The fort, under the protection of the Department of Archaeology and Museums, has been restored and repaired several times. The defensive walls and the massive artillery platform are still in existence. It is quadrangular in plan,measuring 86.56 m × 57.0 m and surrounded by a 1.06 m thick brick-wall, 3.05 meter in height, with inner and intermediate bastions.
The wall is built solid at the bottom. There is a circular artillery platform with a staircase on the west side, which leads up to the raised artillery platform to be entered by a five-foil arched gateway. The artillery platform, meant for a big calibre cannon aiming at the attackers coming up the river, is a new feature of the Mughal river forts in Bengal.
The platform has two circles of which the inner is 15.70m and the outer is 19.35m in diameter respectively. It is 6.09m in height and surrounded by walls. The corner bastions on both sides of the western wing are wider than those of the eastern wing, which are 4.26m, while the two on the western wing are 6.85m in diameter. The fort has two main parts; one is a fortified rampart wall of enormous dimension, which has numerous wide and narrow loopholes. And the other part, the most important one, is a raised outwork on the western face. Excepting the artillery platform, there is no trace of any permanent structure within the fortification walls. All round, the walls are crowned by machicolated merlons, which are on average one metre high.
The fort is provided with a single entrance gate on the north. The arched gateway is placed within a rectangular frame and both the sides are decorated with several plastered panels. The lofty arch of the entrance gateway is of the four-centred variety. There are four corner bastions. Unlike the bastions of the forts at Hajiganj and Idrakpur the bastions of this fort are octagonal in plan.
The fort is not dated by any inscription. Though the construction of this fort is attributed to Mir Jumla, there is no evidence for this. On stylistic similarities with other Mughal river-forts in and around Dhaka it is datable to the mid-17th century.
)
[3] => Array
(
[name] => Hajiganj Fort
[post_id] => 10780
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/hajiganj-fort/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Hajigonj-Fort-Narayanganj-011-300x225.jpg
[post_content] =>
Hajiganj Fort (হাজীগঞ্জ দুর্গ) also called Khizrpur Fort, situated at Hajiganj locality of Narayanganj on the western bank of the Sitalakshya (শীতলক্ষ্যা). Having the characteristics of a water fort, it was originally built just at the point where the old Buriganga (বুরিগঙ্গা) discharged into the Sitalakshya. It may have been built soon after Islam Khan established the Mughal capital at Dhaka, and was intended to countercept the raids of the Magh and Portuguese pirates.
The fort, quadrangular in size, consists of a pentagonal curtain wall machicolated for muskets with rounded corner bastions. On the inner side of the curtain wall there is 1.22 meter high rampart walkway from the base of the curtain wall which is itself pierced by several musketry holes. Each of the corner bastions has staircase inside up to the rampart level and its merlons have wider holes in between meant for gun firing. In a corner of the fort quadrangle there is a free tall square column of brickwork which seems to be a guard tower. The existence of this column links the fort with other water forts of the time. The existence of the elevated platform for the setting of cannons is an important feature of the fort.
The only small gateway of the fort towards the river side suggests that the means of communication was by the river. The pentagonal gateway is placed in a rectangular structure with engraved rectangular arches on the both sides. The top of the gateway is decorated with lotus finial. There having no other structure inside the fort, it seems that the fort was occupied only in the rainy season when the pirates were expected, and that the occupants used tents as their shades. The fort area is now being used as the Fire Brigade headquarters of Narayanganj.
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)
