Brief
Walipur Alamgiri Mosque is situated in Walipur village under Hajiganj Upazila of Chandpur district. There are two mosques in the same locality – one known as Shahi Alamgiri Mosque and the other as Shah Shuja Mosque. The Alamgiri mosque has suffered much due to subsequent restoration works. Nevertheless, enough still survives to give an idea of its original plan and design. A Persian inscription in fine nastaliq character, fixed over the central doorway, records the construction of the mosque by one Abdullah in 1692 AD in the reign of Alamgir Aurangzeb.
In the middle of the eastern facade of the oblong mosque (15.24 m by 8.23 m) there is a projected fronton bordered with octagonal turrets through which opens out the main doorway. This has a higher arch with a half-dome within a rectangular frame. There are two more doorways in the eastern facade, one on either side of the central opening, having an outer arch with a half-dome below. Each of the north and south walls is pierced with a pair of arched doorways. The mosque has therefore seven archways in total -three in the east and two on each of the north and south walls. The four exterior angles of the building are strengthened by octagonal towers, which are carried beyond the horizontal parapets and topped over with kalasa finials, but have now been renovated.
Two massive octagonal brick pillars divide the interior of the mosque into five square bays – a large one in the middle (5.87m a side) and two smaller ones on its either side which are arranged in the east-west axis. Archways interconnect the bays; the arches are placed directly on two free standing octagonal pillars and engaged semi-octagonal pillars. It is worth noting that these arches are continued upwards as walls to make the bays above. This special device has given the mosque a two-storied appearance internally. All the five bays are roofed over with domes crowned with lotus and kalasa finials on cylindrical drums. The domes are carried on half-domed squinches on the upper corners and the blocked arches in between the square inches in the middle of the walls.
Octagonal turrets rising high above the horizontal parapets border the outside projection of the central mihrab, like that of the central archway. Inside, there are three mihrabs in the qibla wall. The central mihrab is semi-octagonal in design, but the flanking mihrabs are of the shallow rectangular type.
The original plastering of the building has been replaced by modern cement plaster. The horizontal parapet is now plain. The facade of the central archway projection is marked with shallow rectangular panels, each being further enriched with such motifs as plants and small trees with flowers in stucco. The central mihrab arch springs from beautifully decorated pilasters and has foliaged designs at its spandrels. The rectangular frame of the central mihrab, though now barely plain, is topped over with a frieze of blind merlons. A fine specimen of Mughal stucco ornamentation is still preserved in the squinches and blocked arches in between, which support the domes above. The extrados of the squinch arches and blocked arches are ornamented with interlocking scrolls, while the tympanums of the blocked arches are minutely embellished with floral scrolls with intertwining rosettes in the centers. Above them all round the interior base of the cylindrical drum runs a slightly sunken frieze decorated with floral scrolls.
Five-domed type mosque, one of the important varieties of Bengal mosques, shows two sub-types: (a) a mosque with a large central dome and a pair of small domes on each side in the same line and (b) a mosque with a large central dome and four small domes on the corners. The present mosque is the culminating example of the second variety. Both in planning and in the execution of elevation details of the building, the architect and the artisans have left behind a clear mark of their skills and perfection of ideas. The division of the interior of the mosque into five squares has been very scientifically effected by the disposition of two octagonal short massive freestanding pillars instead of the two east-west wide arches of the previous examples of the series. Mosques on this model were not built in Bengal for a long time, but almost two centuries later the type reappeared in the Becharam Dewri Mosque (1872) in the city of Dhaka. In plan Becharam Dewri Mosque is an exact copy of the Alamgiri Mosque but inferior in quality and elevation details.
Such mosque design in Bengal started with austagram mosque and evolved through the sarail mosque and the Walipur Alamgiri Mosque. The design is really unique. Question may now arise as to the origin of this particular kind of Bengal mosques. In Turkey under the early Ottomans the mosque of Rustam Celebi (c first half of the 15th century) at Tokat provides perhaps the earliest known example of its kind with five domes – the large central one and a small one on four corners. Similar plan is also found in such other Ottoman mosques as the Guzelce Hasan Bey Mosque (1406) in Hayrabolu and the Uc Serefeli Cam (1437-47) at Edirne. These mosques are generally regarded as the precursors of the great Ottoman mosques at Istambul – Bayezid mosque (1501-06), Sulaymaniya Mosque (1550-59), and the beautiful Selimya Mosque (1569-75) at Edirne. The five-roomed or five-domed planning of the Ottoman mosques may perhaps be said to have been dictated by those of some early Muslim buildings of Syria.
In India the Jamat Khana Mosque (1310-16) at Delhi is a lone example of its kind. This mosque design continued to have been practiced in Northern India in an elaborated form in Humayun’s Mosque (1530) at Agra, where four small domed-rooms, instead of two, are attached on either side of the large central domed chamber. It may, therefore, be said that the plan of the second variety of the five-domed type mosques in Bengal was not innovated by Bengal architects, and its idea is very likely to have been borrowed from the sources stated above, particularly perhaps from those of Turkey or Upper India.
Written by: MA Bari
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[name] => Choto Sona Mosque
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During the regime of Sultan Hussain Shah, Choto Sona Mosque was built from 1493-1519. The 50 domes of the mosque were adorned with precious elements; so it was named as Choto Sona Mosque. It is perpetuated by the Department of Archeology and Museums, Government of Bangladesh. The adorned precious elements which were responsible for giving this name, are nonexistent now. The premise of the mosque is on an overall area of 42 m from east to west and 43.5 m from north to south. The mosque is located 3.5 km from Kotwali gate, 0.5 km to south of Mughal Tankhana complex in the quarter of Firozpur. The photo of this mosque is printed in our 20 taka note.
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[name] => Mahisantosh Mosque
[post_id] => 5809
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Mahisantosh Mosque located near the India-Bangladesh edge about 13 km northern western of Dhamorihat Thana Sadar in Naogaon place. Mahisantosh, known from Pre-Muslim periods, came to reputation during the guideline of Sultan Ruknuddin Barbak shah (1459-1474) who raised its place to an excellent town and known as it Barbakabad after him. Many traditional hemorrhoids, located in different places of the town, can still be monitored. In 1916 the varendra analysis team conducted a traditional excavation at Mahisantosh in the remains of the Jami Masjid heap. A little element of the mosque was exposed. Very lately individuals, after removing weeds, vegetation and junk of the Jami Masjid heap have developed up a new chauchala tin shade kacha creating on the old ranking of the mosque to perform Sunday desires. From the present remains it is still possible to recover the exclusive design of the mosque.
The 2.25m large materials of the rectangle-shaped mosque (24m X 16.20m externally) with semi-octagonal place techniques at the four aspects were designed of rock and bricks; the main was designed of rocks and the inner and external activities were secured with rock places. The top aspect act was provided with five (arched) doorways. Most probably the main one was larger than the flanking ones. There were three (arched) areas each on the south east aspect of and southern region aspects.
The inner of the mosque (19.50m X 11.70m) was divided by two selections of rock assistance supports, each having four assistance supports. Each main was status on an office rock foundation. The foundation of each main was divided into three sections: the decreased place, about 0.40m, was rectangle-shaped shape with pie design on its face; the middle element, about 1.55m, was decagonal with pattern and gong components and the greater element, about 0.96m, was polygonal (16 sided) with pattern and gong components and suspended pearl-string of 50% team design.
The main nave of the mosque, larger than the element ones, had three rectangle-shaped places and was perhaps secured over by Persia chauchala bins. Hemispherical domes, 12 in all, might have secured the element chicken wings. Thus the ceiling top program was almost just like that of the shatgumbad mosque at Bagerhat (1459 AD).
There are five mihrabs in the Qibla materials invert the top side aspect possibilities. The main mihrab, a little bit larger than the element ones, was removed from here and is now managed in the varendra analysis collection. Originally it was designed from 1 product of rock with amazing eye-catching schemes; pattern and gong, lotus and palmetto are its main ingredients. The extant mihrab at the southern region end also contains amazing developed design. It seems to have been designed of three places of rock. The main element of the mihrab industry is developed with attractive pattern and gong art work. On the element of the pattern is suspended a hand crafted series. A complete bloomed lotus weighs from the end of the pattern. The sidepieces of the rock places have geometric styles in round and rectangle-shaped shape types. The rosettes in the top and platform increase the beauty of the mihrab. It may be described here that the pattern and gong design, a very familiar eye-catching program, is also seen in mosques like darasbari, chhota sona and kusumba.
Stone-blocks calming propagate in and around the mosque involved eye-catching components on their activities. These developed stone-blocks indicate that the external outside of the materials of the mosque may have been developed with rock styles. The attractive devices are mostly geometric in design with flowery styles, palmette, nailheads, pie styles, look for components, pattern and gong components and suspended 50 % round jewelry. Some developed clay-based rocks were also exposed at a lot of period of removing junk. These clay-based rocks might have been used on the inner encounter of the drums equipment of the domes. Similar eye-catching program is seen in other mosques e.g., Darasabari, Chhota Sona and Kusumba.
When the Varendra Research Community conducted excavation on the website they discovered an epigraph product. It authorized the growth of a mosque during the guideline of Alauddin Husain shah in 912 AH/1506 AD. Very lately, another epigraph product was exposed at a lot of period of removing junk from the mosque. Currently it is calming before aspect of the lately designed kacha mosque creating. The epigraph contains two selections of writing and is developed on dark-colored basalt rock. It keep in mind the development of a mosque in a lot of period of Sultan Ruknuddin Barbak Shah by Ulugh Khan Hasan in the 867 AH/1463 AD.
Growth of these two individual from the same ruinous mosque improves some issues about the period of your energy and energy of growth of the mosque. Was the mosque developed in a lot of period of Sultan Barbak Shah or during a lot of period of Alauddin Husain Shah? Was it developed in a lot of period of Barbak Shah and therefore redesigned (or reconstructed) during the guideline of Alauddin Husain Shah? Or, was one of these two individual collected from outside and kept in the mosque when the mosque was in an amazing condition of preservation? It is not possible to figure out any of the above possibilities. It is, however, quite likely that the mosque was developed during the guideline of Sultan Barbak Shah in 867 AH (1463 AD) and knowledgeable a renovating during a lot of period of Sultan Alauddin Husain Shah in 912 AH (1506 AD).
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[name] => {:en}Shat Gombuj Mosque{:}{:bn}ষাটগম্বুজ মসজিদ{:}
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The Shat Gombuj Mosque has existed for nearly for 6 centuries. It is also referred to as sixty Dome Mosque. It is one of the largest historical mosques in the Bangladesh. People in Indian subcontinent praise it for architectural beauty. Khan Jahan Ali built the Shat Gombuj Mosque. The walls are unusually thick, made from tapered brick. 77 low domes are located inside and one dome on every corner.
Many aisles serve as divisions in its interior. Most of its parts were decorated by terracotta. The structure looks like a fortress, three smaller mosques can be found near it. They are Bibi Begni’s Mosque, which is found on its western side; the Chunakhola Mosque, located half a mile northwest of Bibi Begni’s Mosque; and the Singar Mosque, which is a single-domed mosque like the Chunakhola, located nearly half a mile southeast of Shat Gombuj Mosque.
{:}{:bn}প্রায় ৬ শতক ধরে স্থায়ী ষাটগম্বুজ মসজিদ দেশের বৃহত্তম ঐতিহাসিক মসজিদগুলোর মধ্যে একটি। ভারতীয় উপমহাদেশের অধিবাসীরা এই মসজিদটির স্থাপত্যশৈলীর তারিফ করে থাকে। খান জাহান আলী এই মসজিদটি নির্মাণ করেছিলেন। চ্যাপ্টা ইট দিয়ে নির্মিত এই ষাটগম্বুজ মসজিদের দেয়ালগুলো অস্বাভাবিক রকমের পুরু। মসজিদের অভ্যন্তরে ৭৭টি নিচু গম্বুজ রয়েছে এবং প্রতি কোণায় একটি করে গম্বুজ রয়েছে। ষাটগম্বুজ মসজিদের অভ্যন্তরকে বেশকিছু সারির মাধ্যমে পৃথক করা হয়েছে যেগুলোর বেশিরভাগেই টেরাকোটার কাজ করা রয়েছে। দুর্গের সাথে সাদৃশ্য এই স্থাপনাটির নিকটে আরো তিনটি ছোট মসজিদ রয়েছে। এগুলো হলঃ পশ্চিম দিকে বিবি বেগনির মসজিদ, বিবির বেগনির মসজিদের আধ মাইল উত্তর পশ্চিমে অবস্থিত চুনাখোলা মসজিদ, এবং ষাট গম্বুজ মসজিদের আধ মাইল দক্ষিন পূর্বে অবস্থিত একগম্বুজ বিশিষ্ট সিঙ্গাইর মসজিদ।{:}
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[name] => {:en}Ronvijoypur Mosque{:}{:bn}রনবিজয়পুর মসজিদ{:}
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Ronvijoypur Mosque has the largest dome in Bangladesh. It is of 11 meters (36 ft) width supported by arches. The corners have tapering circular towers while the external molding has a slight curve. The interior of the Ronvijoypur Mosque is plain. However the main mihrab consists of decorations of floral patterns. It was constructed according to khan Jahan style of architecture. Several renovations took place during the 1960s and 1970s. However, more repair work is required to prevent dampness inside the tomb, and also to the brick work on the exterior surfaces.
[This spot needs more detail. If you have more inform]ation and photos, please be advised to add in our website. Your name will be published as a Content Contributor]
{:}{:bn}খুলনা বিভাগের বাগেরহাট জেলায় (খুলনা-বাগেরহাট মহাসড়কে) খানা জাহানের সমাধির উল্টোদিকে রনবিজয়পুর মসজিদ অবস্থিত। বাংলাদেশের বৃহত্তম গম্বুজ রয়েছে এই মসজিদে। খিলানের উপর ভর করা এই মসজিদের গম্বুজটি প্রায় ১১ মিটার (৩৬ ফুট) প্রশস্ত। রনবিজয়পুর মসজিদের কোণায় সরু গোলাকার টাওয়ার রয়েছে এবং মসজিদের বাইরের নকশার কাজ সামান্য বাঁকানো। তবে মসজিদের মূল মিহরাবে ফুলের নকশা রয়েছে। খান জাহানের স্থাপত্যশৈলী অনুসরণ করে এই মসজিদটি নির্মাণ করা হয়। ষাট এবং সত্তরের দশকে রনবিজয়পুর মসজিদটি কয়েকদফা মেরামত করা হয়। তবে, মসজিদের গম্বুজের অভ্যন্তরের এবং বাইরের দেয়ালের আদ্রতা দূর করতে মসজিদটিকে আরো মেরামতের প্রয়োজন আছে।{:}
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