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GLAM at Shah Agricultural Information Library and Museum

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GLAM at Shah Agricultural Information Library and Museum is a documentation initiative organized by Wikimedia Bangladesh aimed at preserving the rich, yet rapidly vanishing, rural and agricultural heritage of Bengal. As modern technology continuously reshapes agrarian practices, many indigenous tools, traditional household artifacts, and historical farming methods are fading from everyday use. This project seeks to bridge the visual knowledge gap regarding South Asian agricultural history by bringing these rare physical artifacts into the digital realm. By creating a structured, open-access archive on Wikimedia platforms, the initiative ensures that these invaluable cultural and agricultural materials remain globally accessible for researchers, educators, and the general public.

Quick Facts

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About the Museum

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Established on 18 April 2008 by retired teacher Jahangir Alam Shah, the museum is the largest private agricultural museum in Bangladesh. Located in the secluded village of Kaligram in Naogaon, it serves as a library, educational, and research center. The museum houses around 1,500 ancient agricultural items categorized into 50 thematic groups (such as bullock carts, ploughs, irrigation devices, and traditional fishing tools), some of which are over a hundred years old. The founder has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the Bangabandhu National Agriculture Award, for his contribution to the agricultural sector.

Objectives

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  • To digitally document Bengal's traditional and rural agricultural tools.
  • To photograph and upload high-quality images of museum artifacts to Wikimedia Commons under a free license (CC BY-SA 4.0).
  • To build a comprehensive visual database of local rice varieties and farming equipment for open knowledge.
  • To enrich relevant Wikipedia articles and corresponding Wikidata items by integrating the newly uploaded images.

Activities and Outcomes

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During the January 2026 visit, the team successfully documented Bengal's diverse agricultural and rural heritage. We captured hundreds of farming tools, including spades (Kodal), digging tools (Khonti), hand-hoes (Nirani), wooden mallets (Mugur), harrows (Moi), rakes (Achra), wooden ploughs (Langol), yokes (Joyal), sickles, pedal threshers, cotton gins, and the traditional husking pedal (Dheki). Beyond agriculture, the project digitized lifestyle artifacts such as measuring cylinders (Sher), leaf umbrellas (Jongra), wooden footwear (Khorom), shell ladles (Dabu), hookahs, hand fans, vintage lighting equipment (hurricanes, lanterns, Kupi, earthen stands), and over 30 distinct regional farmer's headgear (Mathal).

The documentation also preserved visual records of folk musical instruments like the Ektara, Dotara, Dugdugi/Khamak, horns (Shinga), and snake charmer's Bin or Pungi, alongside indigenous traps (Chai, Kholshani), slingshots (Gulti), whips (Chabuk), and spears (Bollom). Additionally, we created a biological archive featuring various soil samples and over 100 local rice varieties with unique native names (e.g., Boushohagi, Radhuni Pagol, Shornoshongkosh, Mohini Salot, and Durgavog). All media files are being uploaded with structured metadata under Category:GLAM at Shah Agricultural Information Library and Museum, establishing a vital open-access visual record of rural Bengal.

Participants

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The core team behind the execution of this project:

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  • Indoor studio and lighting setup for artifact documentation.
    Indoor studio and lighting setup for artifact documentation.
  • Outdoor documentation and measurement of traditional agricultural tools.
    Outdoor documentation and measurement of traditional agricultural tools.
  • Data entry and classification of rice variety samples.
    Data entry and classification of rice variety samples.
  • Macro photography and technical configuration for detailed shots.
    Macro photography and technical configuration for detailed shots.
  • Badshavog, a Bangladeshi rice variety.
    Badshavog, a Bangladeshi rice variety.
  • Nerika-4 rice variety.
    Nerika-4 rice variety.
  • Traditional bamboo measuring cylinder for grains.
    Traditional bamboo measuring cylinder for grains.
  • Dugdugi, a traditional folk percussion instrument.
    Dugdugi, a traditional folk percussion instrument.
  • Pungi or Been, a wind instrument traditionally used by snake charmers.
    Pungi or Been, a wind instrument traditionally used by snake charmers.
  • Paduka, ancient wooden sandals used in rural Bengal.
    Paduka, ancient wooden sandals used in rural Bengal.
  • Traditional wooden slingshot (Gulti).
    Traditional wooden slingshot (Gulti).
  • Traditional hook used for catching snakes.
    Traditional hook used for catching snakes.
  • Traditional rack used for washing and processing jute fiber.
    Traditional rack used for washing and processing jute fiber.
  • Traditional hay knife (Hasua) used for cutting straw.
    Traditional hay knife (Hasua) used for cutting straw.
  • Nirani, a hand tool used for weeding in agricultural fields.
    Nirani, a hand tool used for weeding in agricultural fields.
  • Another type of Nirani.
    Another type of Nirani.
  • Large traditional wooden ladle (Dabu).
    Large traditional wooden ladle (Dabu).
  • Sample of Peat soil.
    Sample of Peat soil.
  • Bamboo measuring cylinder.
    Bamboo measuring cylinder.
  • Sample of white clay from Netrokona, Bangladesh.
    Sample of white clay from Netrokona, Bangladesh.
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