Vedpsagar at 05:42, 19 December 2025

2025-12-19T05:42:21Z

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{{Short description|Monument in West Bengal, India}}
{{Infobox Mandir
| name = Jatar Deul
| image = Jatar Deul - WB.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| map_type = India West Bengal#India
| map_caption = Location in West Bengal##Location in India
| coordinates = {{coord|21|59|33|N|88|29|15|E|type:landmark_region:IN-WB|display=inline,title}}
| native_name = '''An [[Archaeological Survey of India|ASI]] [[List of Monuments of National Importance in West Bengal|Listed Monument]]'''
| country = India
| state = West Bengal
| district =
| location = Kankan Dighi/Jata<br/>South 24 Parganas
| elevation_m = 30
| deity = [[Shiva]]
| festivals=
| architecture = [[Bengal temple architecture#Rekha deul|Rekha deul]]
| temple_quantity =
| monument_quantity =
| inscriptions =
| established = 10th -11th century
| groundbreaking =
| year_completed = 10th -11th century
| creator =
| website =
}}

'''Jatar Deul''' is located in district South 24 Parganas of the [[India]]n state [[West Bengal]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=ASI, Kolkata Circle |url=http://www.asikolkata.in/24parga.aspx#JatarDeul}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> This is a brick temple and is datable between the 10th and 11th century on the basis of its architecture.<ref name=":1" /> However, this type of brick temple we can see at Nebia Khera, [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name="timesofindia">{{cite web |title=On a trail to explore stories behind brick temples |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/on-a-trail-to-explore-stories-behind-brick-temples/articleshow/63154081.cms?from=mdr |website=[[The Times of India]] |publisher=[[The Times Group]] |access-date=9 November 2023 |date=4 March 2018}}</ref>

== Location ==
The Jatar-Deul stands isolated near a village named jata (from which the name comes from) in the surroundings of the locality Kanakan Dighi, about 5 km east of the small town of [[Raidighi]] in the [[Mathurapur II]] community development block in the [[Diamond Harbour subdivision]] of the district of [[South 24 Parganas]] in [[West Bengal]].<ref name="Rangan">{{cite web |last1=Datta |first1=Rangan |title=Jatar Deul horse race: Inexperienced riders, uneven tracks and unbridled fun |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/my-kolkata/places/witnessing-the-jatar-deul-horse-race-in-kankandighi-near-kolkata/cid/1860599 |access-date=21 April 2022}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Jatar Deul.jpg|thumb|Jatar Deul]]
The temple is known by the name of "Jatar Deul ".<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=List of Ancient Monuments in Bengal |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.38650/page/n79/mode/1up}}</ref> This brick temple is traditionally connected with an inscription (not traceable now) of one Raja Jayantachandra, purported to have been issued in 975 CE.<ref name=":1" /> It was probably dedicated to Mahadev or Siva, who also goes by the name of Jatadhari.<ref name=":3" /> The Archaeological Department board at the temple site places establishment around 11th century.<ref name="Rangan" /> However, there was no deity inside the temple.<ref name=":1" /> The discovery of Jatar Deul dates back to the middle of the nineteenth century, when land surveyors stumbled upon a towering brick structure in the midst of the [[Sundarban]].<ref name="Rangan"/>

==Consecration==
What purpose it served is now a matter of conjecture.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Monographs of the Varendra Research Society no. 3 by Majumdar N.G. |url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.22516/page/n15/mode/1up}}</ref> There is neither a cult nor any other sculptural or inscriptional evidence available, it is also the consecration of the temple is unclear – some believe it was originally for a Buddhist structure; others see it as a building in honor of the [[Hindu]] God [[Shiva]] (Mahadev).<ref name="binoyghosh">Ghosh, Binoy, ''Paschim Banger Sanskriti'', {{in lang|bn}}, part III, 1980 edition, pages 152-155, Prakash Bhaban, Kolkata</ref>

==Architecture==
It towers nearly 100 ft. above the plain.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Monographs of the Varendra Research Society no. 3, by Majumdar N.G. |url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.22516/page/n14/mode/1up}}</ref> The entrance which is on the east is 9.5 ft. wide and is spanned by a pointed arch.<ref name=":2" /> The inside is about 10 ft. square and the walls are about 10 ft. thick.<ref name=":2" /> No plinth is visible and the floor is some six feet below the ground, and is reached by a flight of steps.<ref name=":2" />

According to the [[List of Monuments of National Importance in West Bengal]] Jatar Deul is an ASI listed monument.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://asi.nic.in/alphabetical-list-of-monuments-west-bengal/|title=List of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains of West Bengal - Archaeological Survey of India|publisher= ASI|work= Item no. 6|access-date=25 January 2020}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|3}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Jatar Deul}}
* [https://www.facebook.com/south24Parganastourism/posts/588769927915210 ''Jatar-Deul – photos + Infos''] (English)
* [http://www.asikolkata.in/24parga.aspx ''Jatar-Deul-floor plan, photo + short info''] ([[Archaeological Survey of India|ASI]], English)
* [http://wikimapia.org/8882517/Jatar-Deul-%E0%A6%9C%E0%A6%9F%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%89%E0%A6%B2 ''Jatar-Deul – Satellite photo + Infos''] (English)
* [http://www.indiamapia.com/South_24_Parganas/Kankandighi.html ''Kankandighi und Jatar-Deul – Satellite photo'']
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{{Hindu temples in West Bengal}}

[[Category:Shiva temples]]
[[Category:Hindu temples in West Bengal]]
[[Category:Monuments of National Importance in West Bengal]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in South 24 Parganas district]]
[[Category:Hindu temples in South 24 Parganas district]]
[[Category:11th-century Hindu temples]]

Jatar Deul - Revision history

Vedpsagar at 05:42, 19 December 2025