Ron and Sally Jo Blog

Apologies to all those who are not interested in history!  (The following blog(s) is heavy on history!) However, knowing a brief outline of Dhaka’s history helped us understand the sites which we recently saw on a tour of Old Dhaka.

Dhaka is the capital and one of the oldest cities of Bangladesh. The history of Dhaka begins with the existence of urbanised settlements in the area that is now Dhaka dating from the 7th century CE. The city area was ruled by a Buddhist kingdom before passing to the control of a Hindu dynasty in the 9th century CE.  In the early 14^th century Islam was introduced and Dhaka was successively ruled by the Turkic and Afghan governors before the arrival of the Mughals in 1608.  The city passed to the control of the British East India Company in 1772 and British ruled the region for the next 150 years until the independence of India. In 1947, Dhaka became the capital of the East Bengal province under the dominion of Pakistan. After the independence of Bangladesh in 1971, Dhaka became the capital of the new state.

The Dhakeshwari Hindu temple was probably built in the 12^th century (legends vary).  The original 800-year old temple was destroyed during the 1971 War of Independence by the invading Pakistani army.  The temple complex has undergone repairs, renovation and rebuilding in its long years of existence and its present condition does not resemble the original.  It is now state-owned and considered the most important Hindu place of worship in Bangladesh.

There are four small temples of the same size and shape.  Each of them is built on a platform approached by a flight of steps and inside has an abstract representation of the deity Shiva on a pedestal.  On another side of the area stands the main temple.  It is a three-roomed structure with a veranda.  In the central room stands a large Shiva deity with icons of Rama and Sita in the rooms on either side.

Bangladesh is home to over 15 million Hindus, representing under 10% of the country’s population.

The Khan Mohammad Mirza Mosque was constructed during 1704–05 AD by Khan Muhammad Mirza. The Mosque is built on a raised area about 17 feet above ground level. Beneath the mosque are rooms which were used for living purposes. There is a stairway from the ground which ends with a gateway aligning the central doorway of the mosque proper.  One thing that is different about this mosque is that it stands alone with no other buildings attached.  This allows plenty of space for worshipers on all sides and for free-flow of air.  The building was recently painted which covered the intricate carvings that had adorned the exterior walls.

Lalbagh Fort is an incomplete but renowned fort and a great work of art by the Mughal Empire in Bangladesh from the 17^th century.  Mughal prince Muhammad Azam started work of the fort in 1678 during his vice-royalty in Bengal. He stayed in Bengal for 15 months but did not complete it.  Shaista Khan became the new governor of Dhaka but in 1684, his daughter, Pari Bibi died at the fort. After her death, he started to think the fort was unlucky, and left the structure incomplete.  Among the three major parts of Lalbagh Fort, one is the tomb of Pari Bibi.

The Fort consists of 3 areas – the mosque, the tomb of Pari Bibi, and Palace – with a fortification wall around.  Recent excavations have revealed other structures including administration block, stables, etc.  There is also a drainage system for the entire fort and a roof-top garden with fountains and a water reservoir. The palace is a two-storied residence for the governor.  A large hamman (bath) is attached and we could see the underground room for boiling water.  The royal toilet is also here! The grounds of the fort are kept well-manicured.

Star Mosque was built in the late 18^th to early 19th century by Mirza Golam Pir, a governor of Dhaka.  In early 20th century, Ali Jan Bepari, a local businessman, financed the renovation of the mosque adding a new verandah and in 1987 the Dept of Archaeology added two prayer rooms. The surface was redecorated with Chinitikri work (mosaic work of broken China porcelain pieces), a decorative style that was popular during the 1930s. All over the mosque the motif of stars dominate the decoration and so the mosque is called the Star Mosque (Tara Masjid in Bengali).  One can also see motifs of Mount Fuji, a crescent-and-star design, and floral designs on the glazed tiles

The Armenian Church (also known as Armenian Apostolic Church of the Holy Resurrection) reflects the existence of a significant Armenian community in the region in the 17th and 18th centuries. Following the domination of their homeland by Persian powers, Armenians were sent by their new rulers to the Bengal region for both political and economic reasons.  They came to Dhaka for business, trading in jute and leather.  The early Armenian settlers built a small chapel in the midst of their community graveyard. By the end of the 18th century the Armenian community had grown considerably and the chapel was found inadequate for the needs of the community.  So the chapel was replaced by the Holy Resurrection Church.

In the old graveyard a statue stands at the grave of Catachik Avatik Thomas. His wife brought the statue from Kolkata. It is inscribed with the words “Best of Husband.” Today the church is only used on Christmas and Easter.

(By the way, the day of our tour was cloudy, humid, & hot.  In some photos if we look bedraggled—we are!)

This entry was posted on Monday, August 15th, 2016 at 10:48 am and is filed under Bangladesh. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.