Rediscover one of Sri Lanka's treasures

Renovated galleries at the Colombo National Museum now open:

Anjalie GARNIER

Did you visit Colombo National Museum recently? Well, I did and witnessed the Colombo National Museum now on par with world class galleries. The newly renovated Coins and Currency, Arms and Armaments and Standards and Banners galleries at the Colombo National Museum closed for a year while undergoing a refurbishment plan, opened its doors to the public on March 13.

The galleries were officially opened by the Minister of Cultural Affairs and National Heritage, Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana, in the presence of Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Sri Lanka and Maldives Nick Nicolaou, Director of the National Museums Dr Nanda Wickramasinghe, Museum officials and many others. Museum Director Dr. Nanda Wickremasinghe said a museum is the mirror of the rich cultural heritage. Displaying a lot of cultural and historical items is not sufficient. We wanted to display these valuable items in a proper manner.

Professor Prematilake was highly appreciated for his guidance and advice in completing this strenuous task. "Professor Prematilake has rendered a yeoman service in preserving our cultural heritage. He is a tower of strength and can be considered a national treasure. "I personally believe the methods of display should be changed at least once in every 10 to 15 years," she said.

The staff of the Department of National Museums are specialised in their own fields. However, the major obstacle is the financial difficulties. "HSBC known as the world's global bank came to our rescue with the noble idea of preserving our rich cultural heritage," she said.

She also thanked the Minister of Cultural Affairs and National Heritage Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana for giving the correct leadership and guidance in this project.

The newly refurbished galleries of the Colombo National Museum provide significant information on coins and currencies, banners and standards and arms and armaments. The coins gallery features indigenous and foreign coins belonging to the Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Dambadeniya and Kotte eras, as well as coins and currencies used during the Portuguese, Dutch and British administrative periods.

The banners and standards gallery presents the evolution of the Lion Flag which had undergone several variations from time to time before seeing it, in its final glory.

COINS AND CURRENCY

The coins of different periods that were used for about 2,500 years are exhibited. The exhibition includes indigenous and foreign coins from the Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Dambadeniya and Kotte periods, as well as coins and currency used during the Portuguese, Dutch and British administrative periods.

The barter system was prevalent from pre-historic times. There was a tendency to exchange goods in order to obtain their daily necessities. With the development of trade for the purpose of easy exchange gold, silver and copper units of value were used, while their validity was determined by the use of stamped symbols.

The use of coinage first began in the 3rd Century B.C. by Lydians and Chinese. At the same time, Greece commenced the use of coins.

STANDARDS AND BANNERS

From the beginning of civilization different types of symbols were used by various tribes, states, provinces or districts to indicate their respective identity. All countries today make use of standards of flags with different symbols indicating their identity. Following this tradition, Sri Lanka, too, commenced the use of Lion Flags from ancient times which had undergone slight variations time and again.

ARMS AND ARMAMENTS

From the beginning, the man has followed various devices to protect himself from enemies. The earliest weapons were made of stone. In the Iron Age, we could discern a great development of the technology of the weapons.

Bows - The bow can be depicted as a weapon that was used even by the pre-historic man for hunting. During the historic age, bows and arrows were used for wars, as a result of which the technology of bow production, too, developed to a great extent.

Spears - The spear was used for self-protection from pre-historic times. In religious festivals and shrines of Gods, the spear is used as guard weapon (Mura ayudhaya) which custom prevails even during the present times.

Swords - In ancient sources, the sword was introduced by the names Asi, Asipata, Kagga. Especially during twin battles, the main weapon used was the sword. At the same time sword was used as items of the ceremonial or official dress. Ancient paintings and sculptures depict different types of swords both indigenous and foreign. The ceremonial swords are often decorated with gold and silver carvings. These have popularly used during the Kandy period.

Colombo National Museum is a national treasure. The public must visit this place and make the best use of this institution.

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