A Dated Copper-Plate Grant from Sundarban

This paper reports the discovery and study of a unique silver-plated copper-plate found during land reclamation at Rukshaskhali in the West Sundarban, near the sea-coast of Bengal. The plate was unearthed from a brick-built chamber enclosed by a thick wall, part of a cluster of ruins that suggest the area was once a flourishing centre of civilization before being overrun by forest. The presence of a Buddhist monument mentioned in the inscription and a nearby village called Pithar-pratima further support the antiquity of the site. The discovery challenges the prevailing notion that lower Bengal recognized Sena supremacy on the eve of the Muslim invasion; the inscription indicates the existence of a previously unknown Pala family or Gurjara-Pratihara branch controlling the region. The plate is inscribed on one side and is plated with a thin layer of silver, a rare feature among Indian copper-plates. The engraving includes a Vaisnavite scene in which Visnu (identified as Bhagavan Narayana of the Narasimha variety) sits in Lalitasana on a wheeled chariot, shaded by a sunshade, with Garuda kneeling in front. The artistic style and iconography link the engraving to the late 12th century A.D. and show affinities with Nepalese and Burmese painting, providing clues to the diffusion of artistic motifs. The inscription comprises 22 lines in proto-Bengali script; minor damage has removed parts of the first and last lines, but the rest is well-preserved. The plate measures approximately 10.5 by 8.5 inches and contains a crack through the bottom lines. The paper provides a transliteration and translation of the grant, which records donations of land or privileges by a ruler whose full name is partly lost. The grant mentions religious foundations and sheds light on local administration, cults, and landholding. The author speculates that the ruling family was a branch of the Gurjara‑Pratiharas or a local Pala line that maintained autonomy in the Sundarban region just before Muslim conquest. The silver plating of the inscription, the distinctive iconography, and the proto-Bengali script make this document an important addition to epigraphical evidence. The discovery underscores the historical importance of the Sundarban coast and invites further archaeological exploration.

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