Evening star., 1901-10-03
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CEYLON'S BURIED CITIES
CURSORY EXPLORATION OF RUINS
OF ANURADHAPURA.
A Solemn Reminder of the Magnifi-
cence of the Sinhalesc
Dynasty.

The buried cities of Ceylon, being far re-
moved from the centers which usually at
tract passengers calling at Colombo, are
not so well known, or so often visited. as
their interest and antiquity demand that
they should be. 1t was my good fortune to
get fortnights holiday at the end of last
year from the monotonous round of tea
growing, and in company with another
planter | determined to see all could OF
these marvellous ruins. We had but a week
to spend at our destination and 1t was the
rainy season, so our camera was not OF so
much use as it might have been, and those
short six days showed us that we were
Obliged to pass over wonders which could
have we'll employed a months research.
The buried cities are three in number, If
one includes the rock fortress OF Sig1rl;
Anuradhapura and Poonnaruwa are more
exactly described cities. Our time being
so short, my companion and | determined
to confine ourselves chiefly to Anuradha-
pura, named after and founded by one OF
the earliest Sinhalese mobiles, Prince An
radha, 504 BIC. Ii is situated in the center
of the North Central province, in a district
covered with the remains of palaces shrines,
temples, vast tanks and intricate irrigation
works. all bearing witness to the greatness
and power of the earliest Sinhalese mon
archy. The greatest of these tanks, named
Kalawewa. is a gigantic reservoir of about
5000 acres 20 feet wide at the top and GO
feet high.
Location of ABuradhapura.
Anuradhapura is about the center of the
Great North rnad. which forms. as 1t were,
the spine OF paoabone of the island. connect
ing the Jaffna peninsula with the planting
districts and Is chiefly used by the South
Indian coolies, who can cross from India
via Adams bridge in a few hours, and can
thence make their way on foot to their va
IL nFN.a Of. antS
of some fifty or sixty of these coolies-men,
women and children-each with little bum
die containing the household goods and en-
tire possessions of its bearer They are at
tracted by the fourpence a day obtainable
in the planting districts of Ceylon, as COM
pared with the penny. the full earnings of
their own country. The Great North road
stretches like a long white tape over the
plain, and runs for miles through dense
jungle, past scattered and picturesque viii
lagos and occasional groups of rude huts,
where the coach changes horses and at a
pinch puts in buliocks. Every fourteen
miles there is a small rest house, more or
less comfortable, where the traveller can al
ways sleep and find food and shelter. A
few acres of paddy fields surround each vii
lage, half-dooded, malarial marshes, where
all the rice the villagers require to supply
their wants is raised 1t is long. monoto-
nous road, starting at the terminus of the
railway at Natalie, and running due north
for seventy miles till it reaches Anuradha-
pura.
As we advance the cultivated lands of
the Kandyan province are left behind. and
dense jungle is on every side Of us. Hab-
itations become scarce we approach
Dambulla, which may be called the half
way house. where there are exceedingly in
teresting rock temples, dating from the
temples is made by a steep staircase cut
in the rock. The temples are a series OF
five natural caverns, entered from a ledge
near the summit OF a huge boulder of dark
rrnic fact h hiexh
from here is most magnificent, ranges of
mountains are in the gray distance and
the rock of Sigiri rises in solitary gran
deur from the dense forest to the east Re-
meath lie the rice fields granted by ancient
kings as the endowment of the temples
The roof of the caverns Is covered with
frescoes nearly two thousand years old
and there is a strange mixture of Brah-
man and Buddhist images and pictures.
vishnu In wood stands opposite to a CO.
lossal recumbent figure of Buddha in stone
forty-seven feet long. and carved out of
the solid rock. One cave, we were inform
ed, was the retreat of numerous sacred
cobras Needless to say, we did not fnves-
tigate that cave.
Creatures of the Jungle.
Forty-two miles of more or less monoto-
nous road bring us to Anuradhapura One
hears the chattering of monkeys, the call
of peacocks in the jungle. and, here and
there. wild creatures-mongoose bandicoot.
etc.-dart aexoss the PATH but the net
work of creepers. with which the trees are
bound together forbfds pursuit, save where
elephants have cleared the way.
The earliest authentic records of Anurad-
hapura date back to the year 437 BIC. a
time when Britain was still unknown to her
Roman conquerors. when our forefath.rs.
stained with woad. still practiced the mys-
tic rites of Druidical worship. When Eng
land was still sunk in barbarism this fair
city OF the east was at the height of its
glory; her vast walls surround an area OF
30 square miles, thousands of priests
thronged the courts of her temples. which
rivaled in magnifcence the richness and
glory of the great Temple of Solomon Sol
emn professions. headed by the king. who
was surrounded by suite of magnifcentIy
equipped courtiers. filled her streets. Her
embassies journeyed to distant Rome, and
her buildings and statues rivaled those Of
ancient Greece in size and beauty of de-
sign.
But this mighty monarchy was at its
height power brought luxury luxury
brought destruction and the Sirhalese dy-
nasty fen before the fierce hordes of Mala-
tn Curr N Col1 in m. n~-