Mainamati : Sanskrit Inscriptional and Archaeological Study

Contents: Preface. Transliteration scheme of Devanagari alphabet. 1. Brief survey of Mainamati, Comilla. 2. Assemblage of ancient sites at Mainaimati-Lalmai hill range. 3. Assemblage of Sanskrit inscriptional copper-plate grants and images of Mainamati and Nearby areas. 4. Archaeological findings of Mainamati. 5. Historical co-relation of the ruling dynasties of Samatata. 6. Identification and explanation of the places and the rivers of the Mainamati copper plate grants. Epilogue. Bibliography. Index.

"Mainamati-Lalmai area is a "small strip of hilly land (11x5 miles)" in the Comilla District on the Eastern Border of Bangladesh. This hill-range area, though small, has yielded a rich treasure of Sanskrit inscriptions and archaeological artifacts belonging to the period of 7 to 13 centuries C.E. A comprehensive and coherent reconstruction of history from this rich evidence was a long felt desideratum. The present study fulfills that lacuna in an eminent way.

The author gives a brief geographical and geo-ecological survey of the area and of its archaeological sites and excavations. He then sets the full Sanskrit epigraphical material--photographs of copper-plates etc., their transcriptions and translations--as also other archaeological artifacts--coins, plaques, pottery, images, etc. From this evidence, he then reconstructs the political history--kings and dynasties--of this area and corroborates it from artifacts and geographical identifications of locations mentioned in the inscriptions. The work throws a flood of light on the much less known history and culture of the South-Eastern Bengal.

The book will be of much interest to historians, archaeologists, researchers and students engaged in inscriptional and archaeological studies." (jacket)