Vidyakalpadruma

Vidyakalpadruma an encyclopaedic work in 13 parts by Reverend krishna mohan banerjee. As it was written in Bangla and English, it was named Encyclopedia Bangaliansis. Articles on history, geography, mathematics and ethics related to Asia, Europe and America are included. The first volume of the Vidyakalpadruma (1845) was entitled Roman Rajyer Purabrtta (An Account of the Roman Emperors). The third volume was Purabrtta O Itihas Sar (Essence of Historical Antiquities), and it contained tales of ancient Egyptian heroes. The fourth volume (1846) was a history of Rome and the sixth volume (1847) a history of Egypt. The eighth volume, Bhugol Brttanta (Geographical Narratives), contained the geography of Asia and Europe. Krishna Mohan hoped to write the history of India, but was unable to do so, because he had no competent references to depend on.

Krishna Mohan was a student of hindu college and a disciple of henry derozio. He believed that the ancient history of India was based on myths, and therefore could not be accepted as true. In Vidyakalpadruma, Krishna Mohan Banerjee displays historical sense on the one hand, while providing Bengali readers the opportunity of being acquainted with world history and geography, on the other. [Wakil Ahmed]