Illustration: Maisha Syeda

Imagine you had a time machine and travelled centuries back but of all the places in the world you could see, you chose to stay close to home, to explore Dhaka. If you went to the Mohammadpur area, you would come across a splendid Mughal-era mosque: Saat Gombuj Masjid, or Seven-domed Mosque.

Although you would be pleased as a time traveller that such an old mosque continues to survive in the 21st century -- the era you came from -- you would also perhaps be shocked to see the striking differences. 

Once upon a time, a branch or stream of Buriganga flowed beside this majestic mosque — as suggested in an 1814 artwork, drawn by Charles D'Oyly, Collector of Dhaka, and engraved by John Landseer.

This incredible image, from the set of folios called Antiquities of Dacca, is titled "Mosque on the Booragunga Branch of the Ganges". It shows a picturesque Saat Gombuj Masjid weary of its age even at that time; plantations wildly growing out of it; a boat passing along...

Hard to imagine Saat Gombuj Masjid like this nowadays!