R. D. Banerji
R. D. Banerji | |
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Archeological Survey of India Banaras Hindu University |
Rakhal Das Banerji, also Rakhaldas Bandyopadhyay (12 April 1885 – 23 May 1930), was an Indian archaeologist and an officer of the
In 1931, in the introduction of Mohenjo-daro and the Indus Civilization, London: Arthur Probsthain, 1931, Sir John Marshall wrote, "Three other scholars whose names I cannot pass over in silence, are the late Mr. R. D. Banerji, to whom belongs the credit of having discovered, if not Mohenjo-daro itself, at any rate its high antiquity, and his immediate successors in the task of excavation, Messrs. M.S. Vats and K.N. Dikshit. ... no one probably except myself can fully appreciate the difficulties and hardships which they had to face in the three first seasons at Mohenjo-daro."
Early life and background
Bandyopadhyay was born on 12 April 1885
Soon, he married Kanchanmala (1891–1931), the daughter of Narendranath Mukhopadhyay. He passed his F.A. examination in 1903 and graduated from the Presidency College with Honours in History in 1907. He obtained his M.A. in history from the Calcutta University in 1911.[5]
Career
Bandyopadhyay joined the
Bandyopadhyay's first major independent professional work was in the fields of palaeography and epigraphy. He won the Jubilee Research Prize of the Calcutta University for The Origin of the Bengali Script published in 1919.[citation needed]
He was the first to study the
Discovery of Mohenjo-Daro
Bandyopadhyay is known for unearthing pre-Buddhist artifacts at the ruins at
His interpretations of this civilisation were published in a number of articles and books: "An Indian City Five Thousand Years Ago" ; "Mohenjo-Daro" (in Bangla, Basumati, 1331 BS); Prehistoric, Ancient and Hindu India (posthumously published, 1934) and Mahenjo-Daro – A Forgotten Report.[citation needed]
Works
This section needs additional citations for verification. (August 2022) |
Bandyopadhyay wrote two textbooks for Calcutta University, namely, History of India (1924) and A Junior History of India (1928). His The Age of the Imperial Guptas (1933) is a collection of lectures delivered by him in 1924. His standard two-volume Bangalar Itihas (History of Bengal), in Bengali (1914 and 1917), was one of the first attempts at writing a scientific history of Bengal. He also wrote two volumes on the history of Orissa, titled History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period (1930 and 1931).
His other significant non-fiction works include, Prachin Mudra (1915), The Palas of Bengal (1915), The Temple of Siva at Bhumara (1924), The Paleography of Hati Gumpha and Nanaghat Inscriptions (1924), Bas Reliefs of Badami (1928) and The Haihayas of Tripuri and their Monuments (1931).
Having published three novels, Pakshantar (1924), Byatikram (1924) and Anukram (1931), his other literary works in
His last novel, Lutf-Ulla, is set in Delhi at the time of the invasion by
Non-Fiction
- The origin of the Bengali Script
- Baanglaar Itihaash (The History of Bengal) (1914 and 1917) - 2 volumes
- Prachin Mudra (1915)
- The Palas of Bengal (1915)
- The Temple of Shiva at Bhumara (1924)
- The Paleography of Hati Gumpha and Nanaghat Inscriptions (1924)
- The History of India (1924)
- A Junior History of India (1928)
- Bas Reliefs of Badami (1928)
Posthumous
- History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period (1930 and 1931) - 2 volumes
- The Haihayas of Tripuri and their Monuments (1931)
- The Age of the Imperial Guptas (1933)
Novels
- Dhrubo (19??)
- Hemkana (uncompleted) - published in Prabasi magazine (1911-12)
- Pashaner Katha (1914)
- Shashanka (1914)
- Dharmapala (1915)
- Mayukh (1916)
- Karuna (1917)
- Pakshantar (1924)
- Byatikram (1924)
- Asim (1924)
Posthumous
- Anukram (1931)
- Luttfullaah (193?)
Legacy
In 2022, in commemoration of the 137th birth anniversary of the illustrious Rakhaldas Banerji, and to celebrate the centenary year of the discovery of Harappan Civilization, the Indian Museum in Kolkata exhibited some invaluable artefacts from its proud repertoire in order to provide a glimpse of Harappan civilization to the visitors.[10]
References
- ^ a b c d "রাখালদাস নিজেই গড়ে ফেললেন ইতিহাস" (in Bengali). Anandabazar Patrika. 7 January 2020. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ a b "Scientist of the Day - R. D. Banerji". 12 April 2017. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ a b Sengupta, Subodhchandra; Bose, Anjali (1976). Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan(Biographical dictionary) (in Bengali). Calcutta: Sahitya Samsad. p. 455.
- ^ "Five New Heritage Buildings for West Bengal". www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/. Archived from the original on 26 July 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ "Distinguished-Teachers". www.caluniv.ac.in. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014.
- ^ "Some of our Distinguished Teachers: Rakhaldas Banerji". University of Calcutta. Archived from the original on 21 November 2011. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
- ^ Sengupta, Subodh Chandra (ed.) (1988) Sansad Bangali Charitabhidhan (in Bengali), Kolkata: Sahitya Sansad, p.465
- JSTOR 23244958.
- ISBN 81-7215-950-1, pp. 210–11
- ^ "Museum to display 5,000-yr-old Harappan artefacts on Rakhaldas's birth anniversary". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
Bibliography
- Bhattacharya, Asok K. (1999). Rakhaldas Bandyopadhyay, Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 81-260-0848-2
- Dasgupta, Kalyankumar (ed.) (1990). Shatabarsher Aloy Rakhaldas Bandyopadhyay (in Bengali), Kolkata: Sharat Samiti.
- Bandyopadhyay, Umesh, Abhishapta Rakhaldas, Kansai Shilai (Bengali Journal), April–September issue 2005, Calcutta.
- Amitabha Bhattacharyya (2012), "Bandyopadhyay, Rakhaldas", in Sirajul Islam; Ahmed A. Jamal (eds.), Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.), Asiatic Society of Bangladesh