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A Note on Excavation‑work by Medieval Bengalees

By Ramesh Basu

Vol. 2 · No. 1March - 1926pp. 180–182English

Summary

Rames Basu turns to literary sources to show that medieval Bengali rulers undertook excavation projects, including the dredging of canals, the construction of reservoirs and the clearance of silted rivers. Quoting chroniclers and inscriptions, he argues that these works were driven by both agricultural needs and ritual merit. The note also cites poetry describing queens supervising the digging of tanks and uses these examples to counter the notion that engineering flourished only under colonial rule.

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Conclusion

The author concludes that indigenous knowledge and initiative played a significant role in Bengal’s hydraulic history, and modern engineers could learn from medieval precedents.

Key passages

Chosen by AI from the article's text. Each one is checked word for word against the text before it is shown.

  • “Towards the હાતે of the Pathan rule and during the reign of ધોલ Mughals, Bengal did not only survive the shock of foreign occupation, but her life-forces also shaped out a new civilisation.”
  • “At the very outset we should obsesve that the underlying motive of those medizval explorers was not ઢાં! થો! archaological, but only to secure and restore फिट ०10 images or sites.”
  • “Thus we ડત that some sort of excavation-work was being carried on in medizval Bengal, th>ugh the fact was not recorded.”

Works cited in this article

  1. Acta Orientalia, Leiden, 1924, છછ 52 પ.
  2. Mitra's Yaéohara-Khulnar Itihasa, ૪૦૧. II, p. 128.
  3. Caitanya-caritamria

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  • Karpinirta

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In this issue

Vol. 2 · No. 1
1–15A Short History of CeylonWilhelm Geiger16–27Stupa and TombB. M. Barua27–38Rasātala or the Under‑WorldNandu Lal Dey38–47The Trade of India (from the earliest period up to the 2nd century A.D.)P. T. Srinivas Iyengar47–52SalihotraGirindranath Mukherji53–67Some old Bengali Books and Periodicals in the British MuseumSushil Kumar De67–76Patañjali as he reveals himself in the MahābhāṣyaPrabhat Chandra Chakravarti77–86A Copper‑plate Grant of Viśvarūpa Sena of BengalHariprasad G. Shastri89–128Inscriptional Excursions in Respect of Asoka EdictsB. M. Barua129–146Principles of Hindu Taxation – Canons of TaxationJ. N. C. Ganguly146–157Hindu Politics in Italian – MachiavellismBenoy Kumar Sarkar157–158Two Seals from CutchD. B. Diskalkar159–176Indian Literature Abroad (In China) IIPrabhat Kumar Mukherji177–180The date of Kaniska and Mr. KimuraSten Konow180–182A Note on Excavation‑work by Medieval BengaleesRamesh BasuCurrent article183–186Perumal's ApostacyK. Rama Pisharoti186–188A Note on the Evidence of Pāṇini on Vāsudeva‑worshipK. G. Subrahmanyam188–191Progress of Archaeological Research in MysoreC. S. Srinivasachari192–195The Cerebralization of the Dental Nasal in PāliVidhushekhara Bhattacharya195–198Calcutta Imperial Library198–203Ownership of the Soil in Ancient India : The evidence of certain texts discussedU. N. Ghoshal204–214ReviewsNalinaksha Dutt, U. N. Ghoshal, D. Bhattacharya, Panchanan Mitra, Subimal Chandra Datta215–219Select Contents of Oriental Journals

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