Paharpur
Paharpur is a small village 5 km west of Jamalganj in the Naogaon district where the remains of the most important and the largest known monastery south of the Himalayas have been excavated. This 7th century archaeological find covers approximately an area of 27 acres (110,000 m) of land. The entire establishment, occupying a quadrangular court, measures more than 900 ft (270 m), and is from 12 to 15 ft (3.7 to 4.6 m) in height. With an elaborate gateway complex on the north, there are 45 cells on the north and 44 in each of the other three sides, for a total number of 177 rooms. The architecture of the pyramidal cruciform temple is profoundly influenced by those of South-East Asia, especiallyMyanmar and Java. It takes its name from a high mound, which looked like apahar, or hillock.
A site museum built recently houses the representative collection of objects recovered from the area. The excavated findings have also been preserved at the Varendra Research Museum at Rajshahi. The antiquities of the museum includeterracotta plaques, images of different gods and goddess', pottery, coin inscriptions, ornamental bricks and other minor clay objects.
Nine miles west-southwest of Paharpur is the archaeological site of Halud Vihara, which has been tentatively listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Kusumba Mosque
Kusumba Mosque is named after the village of Kusumba, under the Manda upazila of Naogaon district, on the west bank of the Atrairiver. It lies inside a walled enclosure with a monumental gateway with standing spaces for guards. It was built by a high-ranking official named Sulaiman, during the period of Afghan rule in Bengal, under one of the last Suri rulers, Ghiyasuddin Bahadur Shah. The inscription tablet is in Arabic, with only the word 'built by' in Persian, dates the building to 966
