Located in Rongpur, the Talatal Ghar was built as a secret army base by Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha and his successors, during AD 1751-1769. It houses two secret tunnels, and three floors below ground level which were used as exit routes during the Ahom wars.
Talatal Ghar is actually part of Rangpur Palace. It consists of the underground tunnels. On top stand the four storeys of Kareng Ghar.
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After the death of the first king the Talatal Ghar, which together with the above-ground Kareng Ghar constitutes the Rangpur Palace, went through many architectural alterations to its structure, which resulted in its irregular shape.
The Talatal Ghar had two secret underground tunnels. One, about 3 kilometres in length, connected the Talatal Ghar to the Dikhow River, while the other, 16 kilometres long, led to the Garhgaon Palace, and was used as an escape route in case of an enemy attack.
Another interesting feature of this monument is the use of an indigenous form of cement made by crushing rice powder and eggshells of swan.
The monument, though built by the Ahom kings, is inspired by Mughal architecture. It has an arched door that resembles Mughal styles of architecture. Other inspirations are a large terrace, a temple with octagonal structure and a few small chambers form the major portion of the edifice. Recent excavations by the Archaeological Survey of India also reveal that there had been wooden structures and logs as well.
The significant structural features of Talatal Ghar are its long open terrace with several annexes, an octagonal temple, cells resembling Assamese type huts and in the ground floor there several enclosed chambers and some portion of which is kept as stylobate.
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The palace was surrounded by a brick fortification and also by an earthen fort (Garh) with dikes filled with water. There is a gun-powder and ammunition store known as “Khar Ghar” near the palace.
You can reach this amazing architectural site via Sivasagar, which is a short ride away and the modern town which acts as a base for the travellers.
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