Nimtali Deuri: Restoring the remnants of a time bygone
Amidst the hustle and bustle of Gulistan, stands the Nimtali palace, bearing the testaments of a lost history.
That these were the same roads that the Naib-Nazims and foreign personnel from the British era used to tread on, has been erased from the memories of Dhaka residents, mostly the ones belonging to the current generation.
The history of the rule of the Naib Nazims of Subah Bangla or Mughal Bengal was the last period of the Mughal administration from 1707-1857. The palace was erected in 1765-66 as a home for the Naib-Nazim (deputy-governor) of Dhaka province near the end of Mughal reign. The Nimtali Palace, studded with the memory of the Mughals and Nawabs of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, is an epoch-making establishment of Bangladesh and South Asia.
"There used to be a palace where the old prison was situated. The first Naib-Nazims would live in that palace when they came to the region. But in 1763-64, when the East India Company occupied Dhaka, the Naib-Nazims built a palace for themselves. That palace came to be known as the Nimtali Palace," said Jahangir Hussain, former director of Bangladesh National Museum, currently serving as a curator for Asiatic Society Heritage Museum.
The deuri (entrance gate), an organ of what is said to be the first colonial building in Dhaka, is tucked away opposite the Sheikh Hasina Burn Unit Hospital, a high rise building that creates a stark contrast to the historical monument, almost as if to show the parallels between what was then, and what is now.
The structure gawks at its spectator as if it were an entrance to a portal -- one that seemingly has an intended purpose to take them for a visit to the land of the lost.
Asiatic Society had taken up the mantle to conserve this 250-year-old relic and decided to turn it into a hub for tourists, students and people keen to know more about their roots.
Inaugurated on October 11, 2018, the Nimtali Deuri houses four galleries, with an exhibition of Mughal coins, jewellery boxes, luxurious attires of the times as well as a resplendent diorama of Naib-Nazim Nusrat Jang's court.
"Professor Sharifuddin, former trustee of the National Museum, was looking for people to be entrusted with the job of executing the project. I was chosen to be in charge of it," said Hussain.
"We formed a team of historians, archeologists, curation experts and started our work by arranging three workshops with the oldest netizens of Dhaka, exchanged views with the board of trustees of the National Museum and went from door-to-door to collect different artifacts of the Mughal times and now, here we are," he added, when asked about how the museum came to be.
However, the design of the project had gone through multiple changes which had dragged the project on for years. For instance, an 1863 sketch by Frederick William de Fabeck, the architects found several pinnacles or small domes on the roof of the deuri which were not present in the actual site, so the curated design had to be modified to maintain its accuracy with archeological evidence.
Masons during the Mughal times used Surki made of brick dust and lime. For good binding, they used natural sticky components like betelnut tannin, catechu, thickened date syrup or even black lentils.
"They also used soft bricks that were kept in the oven for a short time so that the bricks can soak all the bindings and the surki. Unaware of the formula, the architects had gone through several trial-and-error phases. Finding authentic materials and artisans to conjure that effect turned out to be a significant feat," said Hussain.
The project had received a Tk 1.5 crore allowance from the government and three publications came out as a part of the project, all of which can be purchased from Asiatic Society's library. The museum is currently open for exhibition from 10am to 5pm.
At the wake of the fourth industrial revolution where individuals are drowned in new information everyday, our history falls in the cracks of a forgotten memory lane.
The Nimtali palace is a stark reminder of that, and the museum is able to truly deliver the essence of the time bygone.
Comments