Hundreds of clay plaques with un-deciphered inscriptions, dating back to the early middle ages, have been lying idle for a long time lacking proper attention from the authorities.
These samples of terracotta, examples of the rich traditional history of Bengal, were found during archaeological excavations and stored without being studied at several museums and storage facilities.
Mohammad Abdul Khaleque, former director general of the department of archaeology, said the department had taken an initiative about three years ago to invite scholars to study and decipher inscriptions engraved on the plates.
However, noted symbologist Dr Bijoy Krishna Banik, working as deputy keeper with the Zainul Abedin Sagrahasala, said he received no call from the department.
“So far as I know, the department has not invited anyone to do that. There are many clay plaques – kept in storage rooms including those in Sompur Buddhist Bihar and Mahasthangarh museum – which have yet to be studied.”
According to sources, these plaques were excavated from several sites including Paharpur, popularly known as Sompur Buddhist Bihar of Naogaon, Vasu Bihar and Mahantangarh of Bogra.
“The Sompur Buddhist Bihar was a Buddhist temple built between 770AD-810AD, during the rule of King Dharmapala,” Mohammad Mahbub-ul-Alam, custodian of Paharpur Archeological Museum, said.
Plaques discovered near the temple, he added, were kept in storerooms. “Some of them are on display in the museum.”
Several samples of terracotta were recovered from Vasu Vihara during excavation drives in 2008 and 2009, these samples carried rare symbols, experts said.
Naheed Sultana, former custodian of Mahastangarh Archeological Museum, said some of those samples carried the symbol of a deer known as “Dharmachakro.”
“There are also those with inscriptions engraved in the form of a bird; these are very rare and uncommon,” she added.
Experts stress the importance of regular excavations and deciphering of inscriptions as a means to preserve the region’s history. Dr Bijoy Krishna Banik, a former official of the archaeology department, said: “There is no point in keeping the engraved inscriptions un-deciphered. It does not behove us not to study them.”