Puthia temple complex: developing tourism through architecture

Abstract

Puthia is one of the richest heritage sites of Bangladesh, because of its numerous temples and palace' The temple complex of Puthia has almost all the styles of temple architecture that has been witnessed in this region through time. These structures were constructed in the period when Bengalwas ruled by subodors under Mughalemperor. From Mughalperiod to colonial period, temple architecture has adopted different influences and elements, starting from Muslim architecture, Hindu revivalism, local building characteristics, colonial influences etc. Puthia's temples carry these influences and changes throughout the time within them and this is the reason, this site is unique among all the archeologically important sites of Bangladesh. The north part of Bangladesh is the richest part as most heritage sites are located over there. The proposal of this project is to design a complete tourist facility for this site, so that it can be the center of tourism for northern Bangladesh. Presently, there is no lodging place or any restaurant that can cater tourists from outside. The aim is to design an accommodation and food court facility for tourist so that, tourist can stay in puthia, as well as visit the other historical sites nearby. Also, to bring life to this site, some additionalfacilities are necessary such as temporary exhibition gallery and craft melo will be introduced.