Bikrampur excavations unravel unknown facts about Sena Dynasty

There is a different kind of pleasure associated with unraveling history, 800 years old that has been deeply buried in the sands of time. Be it the royal palace, pre-historic lake, the gigantic corridor---- these incredible elements from the long-forgotten pages of history can all be found at Padmapar near Bikrampur. The ruins of the Sen Dynasty have been found in Munsiganj, Rampal, Agrasar. Bikrampur Foundation has taken up the responsibility of discovering these precious possessions of bygone times which have a great archaeological importance. 

Boudhabihar of Raghurampur and Tangibari of Nateshwar have been identified as Buddhist territory previously. Extensive excavation work has been carried out from 2011 to recover ancient monuments and archaeological resources in Bajrajogini and Rampal regions. An ancient Buddhist monastery was discovered in 2013 near the ancestral home of the famous Buddhist scholar and evangelist, Atish Dipankar. The monastery is known as ‘Bikramanipur Vihar.’ The monastery comprises of five rooms where monks used to live in the yesteryears. It is believed that this monastery has a close association with famous Buddhist monk and teacher Atish Dipankar. 

The discovery of such significant archaeological patterns has given rise to a great amount of enthusiasm and interest among historians. The ruins of the royal palace have been found in Ballalbari of Rampal. Ancient brick masonry, pottery and charcoal have also been discovered here. Carbon-14 testing has been done to determine the period of construction and the age of these discovered possessions. The samples will be sent to the American laboratory for carbon testing of charcoal. 

It is believed that there is a palace and a temple of King Ballal Sen within the premises of Ballalbari. Archaeological materials have been buried for the last 800 years and were unearthed within two days of experimental mining. Locals say the Ballalbari area of Rampal Union was known as ‘Bikrampur,’ which was also considered the capital of the Sena Dynasty of Bengal. But there was no trace of any palace here as no archaeological excavation had been done earlier in this region.

Jahangir Nagar University professor Shah Sufi Mostafizur Rahman, who is supervising the excavation said that each stone in Ballal House is of utmost importance as these could throw valuable insight on ancient civilizations and lost time. It is expected that once the excavation work is through, many more significant and important elements would be unearthed.