Bibi Maryam Tomb and Mosque Complex, Narayanganj

A complex of a tomb, a mosque, a guest reception hall, an arched gateway and an enclosure wall in the Hajiganj quarter of Narayanganj, near Dhaka. A 2023 journal article attributes it to Shaista Khan, Subadar of Bengal, and dates it to the late seventeenth century on stylistic grounds, since no inscription survives; the article presents it as an example of Mughal architecture in Bengal ¹.

The article says the tomb was built for Shaista Khan's daughter, Bibi Maryam, and that a mosque, a reception hall and a gateway were added around it ². The same article admits that Bibi Maryam's identity is unclear, and that the historian Ahmad Hasan Dani found no source that clearly establishes her genealogy ¹. No inscription has been found on any of the buildings, so the exact date of construction is not known ¹.

The tomb is square in plan, about 49 feet 6 inches a side and about 18 feet high, faces south, has a black basalt base and white basalt walls, and is crowned by a dome on an octagonal drum ³, ⁴, ⁵. Six further graves lie on the terrace; one carries a plaque naming its occupant ³.

The mosque is rectangular, with three domes and three mihrabs on its western wall. Four minarets surround it, some demolished and rebuilt, and a new minaret was added at the north-east corner ⁶, ⁷, ⁸. The article gives two different widths for the mosque, between 24 and 28 feet ⁶, ⁷.

The authors describe the complex as damaged. Parts of the enclosure wall have been breached, and the main arched gateway has been walled up and its plaster has fallen away ⁹, ¹⁰. In the authors' view, a new mosque built against the original one has hidden it, and careless renovation has harmed its decoration. This is their opinion, not a finding of the museum ¹¹. They call for conservation under the rules of the Department of Archaeology and for a change in how the public regards heritage sites ¹¹, ¹².

The article states that Islamic teaching clearly forbids building over graves, which is why early graves in Bengal were left open ¹³. This is the article's statement, presented here as a view and not as a ruling. The authors also argue that the guest hall is not an entrance, as some visitors assume ¹⁴.