Paharpur an important archaeological site in Bangladesh, situated in a village named Paharpur (Pahadpur) under the Badalgachhi Upazila of Naogaon

district. The village is connected with the nearb !ailwa station "amalgan#, the district town Naogaon and "aipurhat town b metalled roads. $t is in the midst of alluvial flat plain of northern Bangladesh. $n contrast to the monotonous level of the plain, stands the ruins of the loft (about %&m high from the surrounding level) ancient temple which was covered with #ungle, locall called Pahar or hill from which the name Paharpur is derived. The site was first noticed b Buchanon 'amilton in course of his surve in (astern $ndia between )*+, and )*)%. $t was ne-t visited b .estmacott. /ir 0le-ander 1unningham visited the place in )*,2. 1unningham intended to carr out an e-tensive e-cavation in the mound. But he was prevented b zamindar of Balihar, the owner of the land. /o he had to be satisfied with limited e-cavation in a small part of the monastic area and top of the central mound. $n the latter area he 3discovered the ruins of a s4uare tower of %% feet side with a pro#ection in the middle of each side3. The site was declared to be protected b the 0rchaeological /urve of $ndia in )2)2 under the 0ncient 5onuments Preservation 0ct of )2+&. !egular and s stematic e-cavation was #ointl started here in )2%6 b 0rchaeological /urve of $ndia, 70!(N8!0 !(/(0!1' /91$(T: of !a#shahi and 1alcutta Universit . $n the beginning the #oint mission carried out the wor; with the financial help of <umar /0!0T <U50! !0: of 8ighapatia =amindar famil and under the guidance of 8! Bhandar;ar, Professor of 0ncient 'istor and former /uperintendent of 0rchaeological /urve of $ndia, .estern 1ircle. The wor; was confined to a few rooms at the south>west corner of the monaster and the ad#oining court ard. The wor; was resumed in )2%?>%@ b !8 Baner#ee, who e-cavated in the northern part of the central mound. Arom the ne-t season ()2%@>%,) onward e-cavation was carried out under the supervision of <N 8i;shit with the e-ception of seasons of the )26+>6%. $n these two seasons B1 1handra conducted the e-cavation. $n the last two seasons ()26%>6&) the wor; was carried out at /0T:0P$! B'$T0, a mound at a distance of 6@&m east of the central temple. 8uring Pa;istan period lower levels of a few monastic cells on the eastern wing were e-cavated b !afi4ue 5ughal, but the results were never published. 0fter independence the site was further brought under e-cavation b the 8epartment of 0rchaeolog of Bangladesh. The operations too; place in two phases. The first phase was initiated in )2*)>*% and continued in ever season up to )2*&>)2*?. The second phase was started in )2**>*2 and continued in the ne-t two seasons up to )22+>2). $n the first phase e-cavations were aimed at establishing the three ma#or building phases of the cells which 8i;shit mentioned in his e-cavation report and discovering the information of earl levels. But in the second phase the wor;s were confined to clear the cultural debris from the court ard of the monaster . Architectural remains Pre>liberation e-peditions have revealed the architectural remains of a vast Buddhist monaster , the /950PU!0 50'07$'0!0, measuring %,&.)?m N>/ and %,6.,+m (>.. This gigantic establishment with surrounding ),, monastic cells, gatewa s, votive stupas, minor chapels, tan; and a multitude of other structures for the

convenience of the inmates, is dominated b a central shrine, conspicuous b its loft height and architectural peculiarities. $t is distinguished b its cruciform shape with angles of pro#ection between the arms, its three raised terraces and complicated scheme of decoration of walls with carved bric; cornices, friezes of terracotta pla4ues and stone reliefs. The monastery The entire establishment, occup ing a 4uadrangular court, has high enclosure walls, about ?m in thic;ness and from 6.@m to &.?m in height. Though the walls are not preserved to a ver great height, but from their thic;ness and massiveness it can be assumed that the structure was store ed commensurate with the loft central shrine.

$n plan it consists of rows of cells, each appro-imatel &.%@ &.))m in area all connected b a spacious verandah (about %.&6 to %.,&m wide), running continuousl all around, and approached from the inner court ard b flight of steps provided in the middle of each of the four sides.

Somapura, Mahavihara, Paharpur

There are in all ),, cells, e-cluding the cells of the central bloc; in each directionC &? cells on the north and && in each of the other three sides. The central bloc; on the east, west and south sides is mar;ed b a pro#ection in the e-terior wall and contains three cells and a passage around them, while in the north there stands a spacious hall. $n the monastic cell No. 2@ three floors have been discovered. 'ere the level of the last one (upper) is within 6+cm from ground level, that of the second $m, while the third (lowest) is about ).?m from the surface.

$t appears that this se4uence has been generalised in all the cells of the monaster . 'owever, the top most floor was removed while the second floor has been preserved. $t is interesting to note that over this floor ornamental pedestals were built in as man as 2% rooms. 9riginall the main purpose of the rooms was to accommodate the mon;s of the Vihara, but the presence of such a large number of pedestals in the rooms indicates that the were used for worship and meditation in later construction phase.

Ground plan of the Mahavihara

Besides the main gatewa to the north, there was a 4uadrangular subsidiar entrance through the northern enclosure near its eastern end. There was no arrangement of ingress on the southern and western sides, but possibl a small passage in the middle of the eastern bloc; was provided for private entrance. 0part from the central temple in the court ard of the monaster there are man other small building remains, which were built in different phases of occupation. The important ones are a number of votive stupas of various sizes and shapes, a model of the central shrine, five shrines, ;itchen and refector , masonr drain, and wells. /till there are some structures whose features could not be ascertained. The miniature model of the central shrine is located in the south of the central bloc; of eastern wing of the monaster . $n this model the plan has been perfected and made more s mmetrical. 0nother important structure in this area is a flight of stairs &m in width pro#ecting for a distance of 2.,? m towards the court ard of the frontage of the central bloc; of the eastern wing. The last @ steps are covered with stone bloc;s. $n the southeastern part of the court ard, near rooms ,6 and ,&, there are five shrines of varied shapes with a highl ornamented super> structure and a plan with a number of pro#ections in which bold torus and deep cornice mouldings are prominent. The most interesting thing in this group is a structure showing the shape of a )@>sided star. 0ll the shrines are enclosed within a compound wall. To its north there is a big well with the internal diameter of %.?m. The ;itchen and the long refector hall (bhojanashala) of the monaster are also situated in this area. 0 masonr drain in between the refector and the ;itchen has been traced to a length of over &@m northward. To its west there are three large wells in a row, which probabl used to serve both the ;itchen D refector . There are some important structures

enclosed within a regular bric; wall that runs from the verandah against rooms )@% to ),& (in the northwest part of the court ard). There are rectangular weep>holes at regular intervals through the enclosure wall, so that the water ma flow out from inside the enclosure. The most important structure in this area is a s4uare bric; structure in which the lower part consists of three channels separated b walling and closed on the top b corbelled bric; wor;C the purpose of the corbelled channels is not clear. Aurther west there is a well preserved well. Central temple The central part of the vast open court ard of the monaster is occupied b a loft shrine, the remains of which is still %)m high and covers %,s4m area. $t was built on a cruciform plan which rises in three graduall diminishing terraces. The shape of the terminal structure is still un;nown to us. 0 centrall placed hollow s4uare right at the top of the terraces provides the moot point for the conception of the whole plan of the spectacular form and feature of this stupendous monument. $n order to relieve monoton and to utilise the colossal structure to serve its basic purpose, provision was made in the second as well as in the first terrace for a pro#ection, consisting of an ante>chamber and a mandapa on each face, leaving out a portion of the whole length of the s4uare at each of the four corners. The ambulator passage with the parapet wall was made to run parallel to the outline of this plan. This arrangement resulted in a cruciform shape with pro#ecting angles between the arms of the cross. 0n enclosure wall strictl conforming to the basement plan, with onl a slight deviation near the main staircase, runs round the monument. There is ample evidence that this complete plan, from the basement to the top, along with different component elements, belonged to a single period of construction, but the later repairs, additions and alterations did not fundamentall affect the general arrangement and plan.

Terracotta plaque, Base of the Buddhist Temple

The basement wall of the temple is embellished with @6 stone bas reliefs which were inserted at most angles of the pro#ection and at intervals in speciall built recesses in the middle. The walls of the temple were built of well>burnt bric;s laid in mud mortar.

The plainness of the walls is relieved on the outer face b pro#ecting cornices of ornamented bric;s (twisted rope, stepped p ramid, lotus>petal pattern) and bands of terracotta pla4ues, set in recessed panels, which run in a single row all around the basement and in double rows around the circumambulator passage in the upper terraces.

Terracotta plaque, Central temple basement

The temple>t pe at Paharpur has been fre4uentl described as entirel un;nown to $ndian archaeolog . The $ndian literature on architecture, however, often refers to a t pe of temple, ;nown as sarvatobhadra > a s4uare shrine with four entrances at the cardinal points and with an ante>chamber on each side (chatuhshala grha). The temple at Paharpur, as now e-cavated, appro-imates in general to the sarvatobhadra t pe. Structures outside the monastery area 0n open platform measuring 6%m *m is situated at a distance of about %,m from the outer wall of the southern wing. $t runs parallel to the monaster . $t stands about 6.?m above the ad#oining ground level and is accessible from a raised pathwa across room )+%. This gangwa is ?m in width. $n between the gangwa and the wall of the monaster there is a vaulted passage running parallel to the wall probabl for the free passage of people outside the enclosure from one side to another. $ts vaulted construction is of utmost importance.

Balarama, Stone

To our ;nowledge, it is one of the earliest and ver rare e-amples of this t pe of construction, proving that vaults were ;nown in ancient $ndia before the advent of the 5uslims. The entire southern face of the platform is mar;ed with a series of water>chutes, each 6+ cm in width and ).6+m in length occuring at interval of ).%m. The channels are provided with fine #ointed bric;wor;. $t was used probabl for the purpose of both ablution and toilet.

Buddhist God Havajra with Sa ti, Stone

Bathing ghat There is a bathing ghat at a distance of &*m from the outer wall of the monaster towards the southeastern corner of the monaster . $t is not parallel to the south wall of the monaster but is slightl inclined towards the north. 9n either side of it there is a parallel wall paved with bric;>on>edge and concrete. The head of the ghat is laid with huge stone bloc;s along with bric;wor;, 6.@m in length. $t descends in a gradual slope to )%.?m, where occurs a band of lime stone slabs. The bed of the ghat is also covered with sand which shows the e-istence of a stream close b . 0 tradition in relation to the ghat is still current among the local people that /andh avati, the daughter of a ;ing named 5ahidalan, used to bathe at the ghat ever da and she is supposed to be the mother of /at apir through immaculate conception.

Bron!e Buddha
Gandheshvari temple To the southwest of the ghat at a distance of about )%.% m there is an isolated structure locall ;nown as the Temple of Bandheshvari. The lotus medallion and bric;s with floral pattern used in the front wall as also the mortar used between the

#oints of bric;s sufficientl indicate that this building was erected during the 5uslim period. $t is a rectangular hall measuring @., 6.?m with an octagonal bric; pillar base in the centre. There is a pro#ection in the middle of the western wall which contains a small room, about l.?m s4uare. $t was used as a shrine and the four small niches on the sidewalls contained other ob#ects of worship. $n front of the door there is a circular platform ,.6m in diameter with a bric;>on>edge floor. Post-Liberation excavations 0part from confirming 8is;hit3s findings in the cells, the post liberation period e-cavations brought to light two new and une-pected facts. Airstl . the remains of another phase of the monaster , probabl the monaster of an earlier period, was discovered below 8i;shit3s original(E) monaster . $t appears that in the earlier phase the monaster was of the same size and the alignment of the enclosure wall and front wall was also the same. The used the original monaster for 4uite some time and subse4uentl removed the earlier floors and destro ed the earlier partition walls and built new ones and thus the changed the arrangement of cells. $n course of this reconstruction either at places the entirel destro ed the earlier partition walls and built completel new ones or the removed the earlier ones at their upper levels and ;ept the basal parts undisturbed over which the built the new ones. The earlier cells measured &.*, 6.2@m internall . $t clearl indicates that cells of the original monaster were larger than those of the upper monaster or 8i;shit3s first phase monaster . Thus in later periods the number of cells was increased. /econdl , in some limited areas the remains of structures and cultural ob#ects (huge number of ceramics) were brought to light underl ing the monaster as well as temple. 0lignments of the walls bear no relation what so ever with those of the monastic plan or central temple. 8ue to ver restricted e-posure of these remains their nature could not be ascertained. $t is worth noting that 8i;shit discovered 6 periods in the monastic cells and & periods in the central temple. The recent e-cavations have discovered one more period in the monaster . 'ence total & periods of the monaster correspond with those of central temple. Now, the 4uestion arisesF which monaster was built b 8harmapalaE $s it the recentl e-posed earlier monaster or the monaster discovered b 8i;shitE 'ere it is interesting to note that, 8i;shit believed that originall there was a "aina monaster at Paharpur of which no traces have survived. This "aina institution would then have been succeeded b the /omapura 5ahavihara founded b 8harmapala in the end of the *th centur . 5an subse4uent authors have accepted 8i;shit3s h pothesis. 1ould it, therefore, now be suggested that these recentl discovered remains underl ing the monaster e-cavated b 8i;shit belong to this former "aina establishment. The ascertainment of it shall await further e-tensive e-cavation inside and outside the monastic comple-. Movable objects 0mong the movable ob#ects discovered from the site the most important ones are stone sculptures, terracotta pla4ues, copper plate, inscriptions on stone columns, coins, stucco images and metal images, ceramics etc. Stone sculptures 0s man as @6 stone sculptures were found fi-ed in the basement of the temple. 0ll the images represent Brahmanical faith e-cepting the onl Buddhist image of

Padmapani. $t appears rather strange that such a large number of Brahmanical deities were installed in this grand Buddhist establishment. The occurance of Brahmanical sculptures in a Buddhist temple indicates that the were gathered from the earlier monuments at the site or in the neighbourhood and fi-ed up in the main temple. These sculptures belong to different periods and can be classified into three distinct groups with respect to their st le and artistic e-cellence. $n the first group a considerable number of sculptures depict scenes from the life of <rsna. There are some other panels which depict the most popular themes of the 5ahabharata and !ama ana and various other incidents from dail life of the rural fol;. Their features and appearances are heav and sometimes crude, without an proportion or definition of form. Though the art is technicall crude and imperfect, but its social content is intensel human, highl e-pressive of liveliness, and artisticall significant. 8espite a general heaviness all through in the sculptures of the second group, there are some panels which are mar;ed b livel action and movement. Thus it is a compromise between the first and third group, which maintains the eastern Bupta traditions. The third group is mar;ed b the soft and tender modelling, the refinement and the delicac of features, which are generall associated with Bupta classicism. Besides, there is a huge difference in attitude, sub#ect matter, temperament and general techni4ue between the first group and the other two groups. The sculptures of the other two groups generall depict cult divinities conforming to the dictates of the Brahmanical hierarch . The stones used in them are gre ish>white>spotted sandstone or basalt. 9f all the loose stone images found in the e-cavations the most interesting is the fragmentar image of 'eva#ra in close embrace with his /ha;ti or female counter>part. Terracotta pla4ues The terracotta pla4ues pla the most predominant part in the scheme of decoration of the walls of the temple. There are more than %,+++ pla4ues that still decorate the faces of the walls and about *++ loose ones have been registered. 5a#orit of these pla4ues is contemporaneous with the building. No regular se4uential arrangement has been followed in fi-ing these pla4ues on the walls. The sizes of the pla4ues var in different section of the walls. /ome are unusuall big, measuring &+ - 6+ - @ cm and some are manufactured in a special size of about )* cm s4uare, but most of them are of a standard height, measuring 6@cm - %%G%& cm. The representations of divinities of hierarchical religion are few and far between. The Brahmanical as well as the Buddhist gods are e4uall illustrated in the pla4ues. The are the principal varieties of /hiva and other Brahmanical gods li;e Brahma, 7isnu, Banesha and /ur a. Buddhist deities, mostl of the 5aha ana /chool, including Bodhisattva Padmapani, 5an#ushri and Tara are noticed here and there. .ell>;nown stories from the Panchatantra are represented with evident humour and pictures4ue e-pressiveness. The fanc and imagination of the terracotta artists at Paharpur seems to be revealed mostl in the various movements of men and women engaged in different occupations. The artists were full responsive to their environment and ever conceivable sub#ect of ordinar human life finds its place on the pla4ues. /imilarl animals > sna;e, deer, lion,

tiger, elephant, boar, mon;e , #ac;al, rabbit, fish, duc; goose > have been presented in their t pical actions and movements. But the representations of the flora are comparativel poor. The lotus and the common plantain tree are represented in the pla4ues. $t appears that this art must have been ver popular in Bengal and through these pla4ues we get a glimpse of the social life of the people of that period. nscriptions The discover of an inscribed copper>plate and some stone inscriptions has helped us to determine the chronolog of the different periods. The copper>plate found in the northeast corner of the monaster is dated in )?2 Bupta (ra (&,2 08). $t records the purchase and grant b a Brahman couple of a piece of land for the maintenance of the worship of 0rhats and a resting place at the 7ihara, presided over b the "aina teacher Buhanandin. This 7ihara, which was situated at 7atagohali in the ?th centur 08, must have been an establishment of local celebrit . $t is worth mentioning here that the same name 7atagohali is found on a mutilated copper>plate found at Baigram dated )%* B( (&&* 08). The mention of the name 7atagohali in a record from Barigram, which is about 6+ ;m to the north of Paharpur, indicates that the two places 7aigrama and 7atagohali ma not be for awa from each other. The Buhanandi 7ihara at 7atagohali must have shared the fate of other "aina establishments in Pundravardhana, when anarch reigned supreme in Bengal in the ,th centur 08. 0t last peace was established and the Pala empire was securel founded in Bengal in the *th centur 08 and a magnificent temple along with a gigantic monaster was established b 8harmapala at /omapura. 8i;shit believes that the mon;s in the new Buddhist 7ihara might have been given the ro al permission to appropriate the land belonging to the "aina 7ihara and ;ept the original charter in their possession. 0ccording to him 3this suppostion can alone, e-plain the find of the plate among the ruins of the Buddhist 7ihara3. 0 number of stone pillar inscriptions were discovered from the site which contain the records of the donation of pillars referring to either Buddha or the three #ewels. The dates assigned to them belong to )+th and )%th centur 08. 0ll the donors have names ending in garbha, viz, 0#a agarbha, /hrigarbha and 8ashabalagarbha, e-cepting one which shows a fragmentar record of some person whose name ended in nandin. $t is possible that these indicate continuit or succession of mon;s at Paharpur 7ihara. Stucco 0 few stucco heads have been recovered from Paharpur, but this art was not as developed as in the Bandhara period. The common feature of all the Buddha heads found at Paharpur is the protruding e elids and in some of them the hair is shown in ringlets. !etal images 9nl a few metal images have been found. The ornamental image of 'ara> Bouri, a standing na;ed "aina and the bronze figures of <ubera and Banesha are the onl important images that have been discovered at Paharpur from pre>Bangladesh period e-cavations. But the post>liberation e-cavation ()2*)>*% precisel ) discovered the torso of a large and highl important bronze Buddha image. 8ue to damage b fire onl the upper half down to the thighs has been preserved. 'owever, it is still possible to ma;e out that the figure once represented the Buddha in a standing posture. The surviving part of

the image measures roughl ).%,m, so that total height of the original must have been about %.&+m. $n view of its st le and the la er in which the bronze was discovered the sculpture can be attributed to about the 2th or )+th centur . The onl other ;nown bronze Buddha figure from about the same period and of roughl e4ual size is the famous image from /ultangan# in Bihar, now in the 0rt Baller of Birmingham 5useum. 1oins 0s man as five circular copper coins have been discovered from a room close to the main gatewa comple- of the monaster . 9f them three are of a uni4ue t pe showing a rather clumsil depicted bull on the obverse and three fishes on the reverse. 0 silver coin belonging to 'arun>ur>!ashid, the <halifa of Baghdad, bears the date )%, 0' (,** 08). 0nother series of si- coins issued b /'(! /'0' ($?&+>&? 08), two of $slam /hah ($ ?&?>?6 08), three of Bahadur /hah ()@th centur 08), two of 80U8 <0!!0N$, one of 0<B0! ()??@>)@+? 08) and one of /ultan 'ussain /hah /har;i of "aunpur. 0ll these coins are fabricated on silver e-cepting the last one, which is of copper. But we are not et sure how these coins made their wa into this vihara. Pottery The potter discovered from the e-cavation at Paharpur was numerous and varied. 5ost of them belong to the middle or the late period roughl from the end of the tenth to the twelfth centur 08. 9ne class of ware, which ma be attributed to the earl Pala period (about 2th centur 08). These are decorated with cross lines in the lower surface onl or on the sides as well. 9nl a few large storage #ars (one inside the other) were found in situ in some monaster cells. These large #ars were set in the corner of the room b cutting the floor of the third period (8is;shit3s second period) monaster . But no food grains or an other ob#ect was found in the #ars. These were full of soil. 0 number of complete saucers could be recovered from the pre>monastic level. This potter ma be attributed to the pre>Pala period (c @th to ,th centur 08). Benerall the potter is well burnt to a red or buff green on which red slip was applied either in bands or on the entire surface e-cept at the bottom. 0lmost all the vessels had a broad base and a protuberant centre while the large storage #ars had a pointed or tapering bottom. Besides a number of vessels shaped li;e modern handis and spouted vases or lotas, there are also vessels with a narrow nec; and mouth with a c lindrical bod . 0 number of lids of potter , dishes, saucers and lamps which include a large variet of circular shell vessels with or without a lip at the rim near the wic; have been found. 9ther common anti4uities are the terracotta crude female figures, the model of animals, parts of finials, dabbers of truncate cone shape, flat discs, sealings and beads of c linderical shape. 0 number of ornamental bric;s have been found in the pattern of the stepped p ramid, lotus petal, the chessboard, rectangular medallion with half lotuses etc