Ananta Vasudeva Temple
This temple was built by Raja Rameshwar Datta in 1649 to express his devotion to Vaishnavism. Although the zamindari he inherited was already quite wealthy based on earlier estates and sanads (imperial land grants), Rameshwar himself was the beneficiary of a sanad from the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, as well as the title of Raja, a reward for ousting other zamindars in the area who had defaulted on revenue payments. The temple is a large ek-ratna temple with triple arched entrances on each side and a sharply curving cornice. The octagonal turret is also in a chala-style and with curved cornice. Its decorative schemes are shared by a small group of terracotta temples from the 17th century across Bengal, including with some at Bishnupur. The Ramchandra temple at Guptipara shares similarities in structure as well as ornamentation. (Thanks to Mohini Datta-Ray for information on the Bansberia Raj)
>>
|
