Sigiriya:

the most spectacular site in South Asia - Part 2

Continued from yesterday

P.L.N. de Silva

HISTORY: Excavations have revealed that the pools were inter-linked by a network of underground conduits, fed initially by the Sigiriya Lake.

Miniature water gardens

To the west of the water garden recent excavations show a miniature water garden, very different in character from the gardens described above. There are five distinct units in this garden, each combining pavilions of brick with paved water retaining structures and winding watercourses. A striking feature of this miniature water garden is the use of this water surrounds with pebbled flows, covered by shallow slow moving water.

These served as cooling devices and had aesthetic appeal creating interesting visual and sound effects. Another aspect is the geometrical intricacy of the garden layout. This miniature garden has a more complex interplay of, tiled roofed buildings, water-retaining structures and watercourses, than is seen elsewhere.

Boulder garden

The boulder garden has a design that is in contrast to the symmetry and geometry of the water gardens. It consists of a number of winding pathways, which link several clusters of large natural boulders, extending from the southern slopes of Sigiriya hill to the northern slopes below the plateau of the lion staircase.

In this boulder garden most boulders had a pavilion upon it. An unusual feature is the "Cistern Rock" taking its name from the large cistern formed out of the massive slab of granite and the audience hall on the rock which has a flattened summit and a large five-meter throne carved out of the rock. The vertical drains cut in the sides of the rocks in a few places indicate that controlled water movement formed a part of the garden architecture in this area.

Terraced gardens

This form of garden has been fashioned out of the natural hill, at the base of the Sigiriya rock by the construction of a series of rubble-retaining walls, each terrace rising above the other and running round the rock.

The mirror wall and graffiti

The mirror wall which is well preserved in its original form dates from the fifth century; built from the base of the rock with brick masonry. The wall has a highly polished plaster finish, from which it has got its name. The wall encloses a gallery paved with polished marbled slabs. There are no verses on the mirror wall dated before the 8th century. Therefore, roughly for two centuries, no visitor had scribbled on the wall.

But 685 verses have been discovered, deciphered and analyzed in two books of high-class scholarship by Dr.Paranavithana. And he has ascribed these songs to the 8th, 9th and 10th centuries. We have to be grateful, to the first individual who scribbled a verse on the mirror wall, because thereafter various people wrote songs to the beautiful Sigiriya cloud nymphs. Some of them were nobles, merchants, travellers and Buddhist monks.

The themes of their songs varied on subjects like love, satires, and curses, witty ironical or sad celebrations of festive or painful experiences. Out of 685 poets who wrote verses on the mirror wall, 12 were women. But strangely, none of the poets refer to king Kasyapa as a parricide.

Dr. Paranawithana says that amongst the 685 graffiti verses written by our ordinary people in the 8th to 10th centuries A.D., there is not a single verse that can be classed as really obscene. (The first gee verse in Sinhala has been left for us by Kati, the charming wife of King Dutugemunu, in a cave inscription in the second century BC. The cave had been donated to a Buddhist convent).

Lion staircase

One of the striking features is the lion staircase, now preserved in two colossal paws and a mass of brick masonry. The lion must have given a vision of majesty when it was intact. The size of claws helps us to visualize the original size of the lion.

In fact, there are graffiti that records the impact that the massive lion had on ancient visitors. H.C.P. Bell said in 1904: "The monstrous Sinha towering majestically against the granite cliff, in bright colour, gazing north-wards over a vista that stretches to the horizon, must have presented an awe-inspiring sight for miles around.

Sigiriya paintings are the earliest examples available to us in a good state of preservation. They are the most famous paintings in Sri Lanka. Verses on the mirror wall suggest that there were more than 500 figures, painted on the Sigiriya rock. But there are only twenty-two figures now remaining. But these few figures have colours so bright as if they were done recently.

Many believed that the Sigiriya paintings were influenced by the Buddhist paintings of Ajantha caves. Bell says "viewed from the ground the fair ladies as distinguished from their dusky hand maids would appear to be unclad above the waist; but close examination shows ultra - diaphanous clothing, dear to oriental painters."

Thus, the upper body is covered by a jacket of very fine cloth. But this costume can hardly be seen and it had to be made out by the armlets worn by the ladies.

There is a line drawn at the place where the armlet is worn. The presence of the jacket has to be deduced from this line on the arm. The technique adopted at Ajantha is Tempara, but the Sigiriya paintings are real frescoes.

That is, paintings done on wet plaster. This technique requires the painter to be sure and quick because he has to finish the paintings before the plaster dries. In fresco paintings, one cannot make a mistake because such mistake cannot be erased. Colours of Sigiriya paintings are so thin that the altered hand in the figure no. 8 of pocket B is clearly visible, in spite of the frantic efforts of the artist to hide it.

This clearly proves that fresco technique has been used at Sigiriya. Apart from being the noblest example of Sri Lankan paintings, Sigiriya ladies have inspired over 685 men and women to write poems about them, and Dr. Paranawithana has presented those poems in two scholarly volumes as the only available Sinhala literature for the period 8th, 9th and 10th centuries.

These Damsels have faced inclement weather, since the 5th C AD. Nevertheless, they remain as fresh as they were, on the day they were created.

No painting, any where in the world, has ever been praised through 685 verses by as many poets, on the famous Mirror Wall of Sigiriya. The graffiti are rarely permanent but some modern vandals have destroyed some graffiti by writing their initials in large English letters on the Mirror Wall.

Cultural Triangle

The recent excavations at Sigiriya and fantastic finds resulting thereby were possible only because of the Cultural Triangle. It identified six projects and the fourth project reads as "water gardens, Sigiriya." At Sigiriya, the Cultural Triangle has identified six sites.

Rampart and garden site

The excavations here did not expose any material of cultural worth. When the pits were dug at the southwestern brick wall, a two-meter base was found. To the south of this brick wall revealed an intricate underground water system, which carried water to the water gardens.

Monastery site

This is situated inside the main gate to the citadel at Sigiriya. Excavations revealed a structure that was slightly oval in shape. This has been identified as a bodhigara. There was a single entrance from the north and the square in the middle. To the north of the bodhigara, there was also a Dagaba and the remains of a lavatory were of the excavations, stone terraces and walls were exposed.

Moat site

The inner wall and the outer wall of the moat were excavated. It appeared that the rampart was built in stages. There was also a stone paved pathway on the rampart.

Summer palace

The Cultural Triangle selected for excavation the moated island on the southern side of the pleasure garden. Some ring forms of tray bowls were found which were typical of such things in a summerhouse. The rubble embankment was cleared and the moat was exposed.

Na tree terrace site

This is a beautiful wide and flat terrace. There are about 20 Na trees dominating the place.

Fountain garden

This consists of two sections and one taken for excavations was the pool to the south. The pool had stepped terraces of brickwork badly eroded. The authorities of this project believe that these pools were intended for bathing and swimming.

The excavations did not reveal any significant find there.

Wherever excavations were done by the Triangle project, conservation had also been done. Additionally, expert landscaping had also been done.

The principal objectives of Sigiriya project, are the excavation, conservation and landscaping of the Sigiriya complex (about 400 acres), in order to clarify and preserve its surviving archaeological character, while at the same time, controlling the development of the surrounding area. It therefore, constitutes a major undertaking in the management of cultural resources.

Perhaps less than 20 percent of the original constructions remain at Sigiriya.

To do excavations, conservation and the study of this 20 percent, our best archaeologists with help from many others, laboured for over 100 years, but king Kasyapa took only 18 years to build the whole of Sigiriya.