The Company’s kut'hi (the East India Company factory), Panama, 1872’s Sonargaon

The Company’s kut'hi (the East India Company factory), Panama, 1872’s Sonargaon

The Company’s kut'hi (the East India Company factory), Panama, 1872’s Sonargaon

Photograph of the East India Company factory, Panama, Sonargaon in Bangladesh, from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections, taken by W. Brennand in 1872. Sonargaon was a noted producer of the celebrated Dhaka muslins. In the mid-17th century the East India Company established factories in the Dhaka district for the trade of muslin. The building in this view is briefly described in J. Wise, Notes on Sunargaon, Eastern Bengal (Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vol. XLIII, part I, Calcutta, 1874), p. 91: The Company’s kut'hi is a quadrangular two-storeyed, native, brick building, with an arcaded courtyard inside. It was a hired house, and is now occupied by Hindu karmakars, or smiths...' This is a general view of the house, partially obscured by a thatched hut and trees in the foreground.

Purana Paltan Maidan, small mosque, 1870's Dhaka

Purana Paltan Maidan, small mosque, 1870's Dhaka

Purana Paltan Maidan, small mosque, Dhaka

Photograph of a small mosque on the Purana Paltan Maidan at Dhaka in Bangladesh. It was taken in the 1870s by an unknown photographer. In this view, the small mosque is almost hidden by a tree. Dhaka was formerly a Mughal capital and then the headquarters of the district and division of the same name. It is situated on the north bank of the River Buriganga and was famous for its fine cotton muslin production.