Brief
Kasba (কসবা) is an administrative unit of the Sultani rulers (1342-1576). The administrative units, such as Iqta(ইকতা), Erta (ইরতা), Iqlim (ইখলিম), and Kasba (কসবা) have been mentioned in the contemporary texts.
So far 37 Kasbas could be traced in the region of Bangladesh, most of which had been within or near about the present district towns. The distance between one Kasba from another varied. It is noticed that official titles were associated with some of the kasbas. We can exemplify Kazir Kasba (কাজীর কসবা), Kotowaler Kasba(কোতওয়ালির কসবা), Nagar Kasba(নগর কসবা) etc. Considering the location, distance of one from another, communication system with the central or Provincial Capital, attachment of official titles etc it is assumed that Kasba were administrative units and were equivalent to districts. An administrative officer, a Quazi (কাজী) and a Kotwal(কোতওয়াল) were in charge of a Kasba.
In this complex of many buildings we can detect several names of businessman who built those in different period of time in 19th Century.
While most of the Kasbas lost their former importance during the Mughal period, Munshiganj, or Bikrampur, as it was known earlier, flourished as an important district through a rich combination of education, economy, literary & cultural pursuits. Therefore, the Nagar Kasba of Munshiganj stood with its importance through the course of time. It is believed that during the British rule, especially during the later part of the 19th century, Nagar Kasba was rebuilt as a residential area of wealthy predominantly Hindu business people, who mostly traded through the river port of Mirkadim.
After the Partition of India (1947), it is believed that most of the Hindu wealthy families migrated to Kolkata. Those who decided to stay back, to tend to their established businesses soon began to find it difficult. As sporadic communal riots continued, the exodus continued till the late 1950s. Families often left silently at night, leaving behind all their belongings. Those who still chose to stay, almost completely left for India during our Liberation War in 1971.
During these dire times, most of these full-furnished wealthy houses fell vacant and remained untended for a long time. Gradually, over time, these empty houses began to be taken over by influential locals. The descendents of these grabbers now own these properties, and live in the dilapidated buildings. It therefore is not surprising that a house that looks like it was purposely built for Hindu owners now adorns the names of Muslim people.
Even in its latest hay days in the later part of the 19th century, Nagar Kasba was a row of magnificent houses, mostly of two floors, though not too large, but built in British colonial styles. The intricate designs and motifs that remain on the walls and pillars are testament to the wealth and taste of the owners. Unfortunately, almost all are now in ruins, where some have even been demolished by present day owners.
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[0] => Array
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[name] => Kismat-Maria Mosque
[post_id] => 9282
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/kismat-maria-mosque/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/kismat-maria-mosque-durgapur-rajshahi-12-300x225.jpg
[post_content] =>
Kismat-Maria Mosque (কিসমত-মারিয়া মসজিদ) is the academic name, where local people knows this as Durgapur mosque (দুর্গাপুর মসজিদ). The mosque is located at the Maria (মারিয়া) village, adjacent to village Kismat (কিসমত), that's why it is called Kismat-Maria Masjid.
It is totally unknown about any sort of historical information. No inscription available at the doorway or anywhere. Even the government doesn't have any document or info regarding this. To add insult to the injury, the local people cannot remember anything about this mosque either. It’s a total mystery.
It is certain that the mosque was built several hundred years back. It is having three domes at the top. Four ornate pillars at the four sides of the mosque. Eastern side of the mosque is having three entrances. The mosque is built over a 2-3 feet of high base. The domes of the mosque is similar to the Kartalab Khan's Mosque at Old Dhaka.
The mosque has a small house type of building at the southern side. This is another great archaeological object from our Bangladesh.
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[1] => 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.
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[2] => Array
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[name] => {:en}Baba Adam Shahid Mosque{:}{:bn}বাবা আদমের মসজিদ এবং দরগা {:}
[post_id] => 7979
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/baba-adam-shahi-mosque/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/baba-adam-300x169.jpg
[post_content] => {:en}
Baba Adam Shahid Mosque (বাবা আদম শহীদ মসজিদ) is an archaeologically significant mosque situated in Munshiganj District.
Baba Adam's Mosque shows all the decorative and architectural characteristics of the sultanate architecture of Bengal. This mosque, in fact, bears the mature form of the sultanate mosque style of this region (Bangladesh).
It is a six-domed mosque. An inscription, fixed above the central doorway in the east, records 888 AH/1483 AD as the date of construction of the mosque. Malik Kafur built it during the reign of Sultan Fateh Shah. Baba Adam's Mosque is now protected monument under the Department of Archaeology, Bangladesh. It has been renovated and is in a comparatively good state of preservation. Besides the mosque there is a tomb known as Baba Adam's Mazar, where, according to a legend, baba adam shahid, who died in a holy war, was buried. It is difficult to ascertain the historicity of this tomb due to lack of authentic sources. There is a newly built small tomb structure situated on the south-east side of the courtyard of the mosque. Previously, there was no roof over the tomb.
The present tomb is square in plan (7.62m a side) and is undated and without any inscription tablet. The simple grave has no feature of architectural importance and the Department of Archaeology is not responsible for preserving it.
{:}{:bn}
বাবা আদমের মসজিদ এবং দরগা মুন্সীগঞ্জ জেলার রামপাল থানার রিকাবিবাজার ইউনিয়নের কাজী কসবা গ্রামে অবস্থিত। বহুগম্বুজবিশিষ্ট আয়াতক্ষেত্রাকার এই মসজিদটির ভেতরের অংশের আয়তন ১০.৩৫ মিটার গুণিতক ৬.৭৫ মিটার এবং বাইরের অংশের আয়তন ১৪.৩০ মিটার গুণিতক ১১.৪৫ মিটার। মসজিদটির দেয়ালের পুরুত্ব প্রায় ২ মিটার। বাবা আদম মসজিদের তিনটি সারিতে প্রবেশের জন্য মোট দুটি পথ রয়েছে। এই মসজিদের পশ্চিম দিকের দেয়ালের পেছনের অংশের তিনটি স্তর রয়েছে এবং মাঝখানের স্তরে নকশাকরা বহুখাঁজবিশিষ্ট খিলানের প্যানেল রয়েছে। মসজিদের ছাদে দুই সারিতে তিনটি করে মোট ছয়টি একই ধরনের গোলাকার গম্বুজ রয়েছে। বাবা আদম মসজিদে দুটি সরু স্তম্ভ রয়েছে যেগুলো কালো অগ্নিয়গিরিজাত শিলা দিয়ে নির্মিত। এই স্তম্ভগুলোর গোড়া অষ্টভুজাকার, ষোল পার্শ্বযুক্ত এবং শিকল ও ঘণ্টার আদলে নকশাকৃত। বাবা আদম মসজিদের মুসলিম আমল পূর্ববর্তী পাথরের পিলারগুলোর উপর মসজিদের সরু প্রজাতির খিলানগুলো দাড়িয়ে আছে যেখান থেকে ছয়টি গম্বুজের উদয় হয়েছে। মসজিদটি ইটের তৈরি হলেও এটির পিলার এবং আয়তাকার স্তম্ভগুলো পাথরের তৈরি।
সুলতানি আমলের বেশীরভাগ স্থাপনার মত এই মসজিদের কার্নিশ এবং ছাদ বক্ররেখা বেষ্টিত। মসজিদের পশ্চিম দিকের দেয়ালের মিহরাবের সাথে সমান্তরালভাবে পূর্বদিকে তিনটি চমৎকার বক্রাকার ফটক রয়েছে।
বাবা আদম মসজিদের খিলান ও ছাদের মধ্যকার স্থানে গোলাপের নকশা রয়েছে এবং ছাঁচের নকশায় প্রস্তুতকৃত কুলুঙ্গির সারি রয়েছে। মসজিদে সবকটি ফটক এবং মিহরাবে আয়াতক্ষেত্রাকার নকশা খোদাই করা আছে এবং উত্তর ও দক্ষিন দিকের দেয়ালে আয়াতক্ষেত্রাকার কুলুঙ্গি রয়েছে। মসজিদটিতে কোন মিনার নেই এবং মাঝখানের ফটকের দুই পাশেই বহু খাঁজবিশিষ্ট দুটি আয়াতক্ষেত্রাকার প্যানেল রয়েছে। ছোট পিলারসমূহের উপরে বাবা আদম মসজিদের খিলানগুলো দাড়িয়ে আছে যেগুলোতে টেরাকোটার চমৎকার ঝুলে থাকা ফুলের নকশা করা আছে। বাবা আদম মসজিদের বহিরাংশের মত নকশা সিরাজগঞ্জের শাহজাদপুর মসজিদের বহিরাংশেও দেখা যায়।
বাবা আদমের মসজিদের নকশা এবং স্থাপত্যশৈলীতে সেসময় বাংলায় সুলতানি আমলের স্থাপত্যশৈলীর চরিত্র দেখতে পাওয়া যায়। এই অঞ্চলের (বাংলাদেশের) মসজিদগুলোতে সুলতানি স্থাপত্যশৈলীর পূর্ণ রুপের মসজিদ ছাড়াও এখানে একটি দরগা রয়েছে যেটি বাবা আদমের মাজার নামে পরিচিত। লোককথায় আছে যে বাবা আদম শহিদ একটি ধর্মযুদ্ধে নিহত হবার পর তাঁকে এখানে দাফন করা হয়। নির্ভরযোগ্য সূত্রের অভাবে এই দরগার ইতিহাস সঠিকভাবে জানা যায়নি। মসজিদের উঠানের দক্ষিন-পূর্বদিকে একটি নবনির্মিত ছোট দরগা রয়েছে। পূর্বে দরগার উপর কোন ছাদ ছিল না। বর্তমানে অবস্থিত দরগাটি বর্গাকার (যার প্রতিটি বাহু ৭.৬২ মিটার এবং এটিতে কোন শিলালিপি নেই তাই কবে এটি নির্মিত হয়েছিল তারও কোন তারিখের উল্ল্যেখ নেই। দরগার পাশে অবস্থিত কবরটি অতি সাধারণ তাই এটির কোন স্থাপত্যশৈলীর দিক দিয়ে কবরটির কোন গুরুত্ব নেই আর তাই প্রত্নতাত্ত্বিক অধিদফতর কবরটি সংরক্ষণও করছে না।
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[3] => Array
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[name] => Balia Zamindar House
[post_id] => 17418
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/balia-zamindar-house/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Balia-Zamindar-House-5-300x200.jpg
[post_content] =>
Balia Zamindar House or Palace is once known as a symbol of dignity in this region. Still some of the ancestors of this zamindari estate living in Kolkata. Interviewing local folks ORB team came to about its identity and partial history, which could be possibly will help to rebuild its actual history in near future.
So far we came to know from different sources that, this zamindari was founded by man named Zamindar Malik Muhammad Box (জমিদার মালিক মুহাম্মদ বক্স) who came to this region from Multan. His son Hazi Malik Karim Box (হাজি মালিক করিম বক্স) was chronologically the second successful famous zamindar of this estate who donated a big amount of money from ‘Kashmir & Kyed-E-Azam relief fund’.
According to the old people of Balia this building is more than 400 Years old. There is a little difference between this Zamindar house with others. It’s one of the few Zamindari estate in Bangladesh which was being founded by Muslim zamindars where as rest of others being established by Hindu zamindars.
This old house is on the way to ruin, most of its building material is being removed. Except its tall dome and a triangular pediment rest others element is lost in course of time.There is a three domed Mosque in front this old House which could be possibly built in some later time.
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