“Certainly, the critical reappraisal of archaeological evidence allows us to narrow the gap between Anurādhapura and Polonnaruva. While the latter has long been archaeologically interpreted as a cosmopolitan urban centre, similar evidence from Anurādhapura has been largely undervalued but is now over- whelming. The remains of Polonnaruva, traditionally dated to between 1017 and 1293 CE have revealed Buddhist monasteries and Hindu temples with bronze sculptures of Hindu deities. This has led some scholars, rightly in our opinion, to speak of religious plurality and harmony. Excavations within the Alahana Pirivena in Polonnaruva uncovered quantities of pottery with appliqué designs, including swastika, śrīvasta and vajra or triśūla, which have now also been identified in the city’s hinterland (Figure 1.7). Bronze figurines excavated at Polonnaruva and representing deities such as Śiva and Parvati have been put forward as evidence of the presence of Hinduism in the city. And yet such evidence was not restricted to Polonnaruva.” [1]
[1]: Coningham et al. 2017, 40) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
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| Year Range | Polonnaruwa (sl_polonnaruva) was in: |
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“As stated above, the transfer of the capital to Polonnaruva has been portrayed as connected with a religious shift towards a more pluralistic and eclectic patronage at state-level, incorporating Buddhist, Brahmanical and Saivite practices. [1]
[1]: Coningham et al. 2017, 37) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
“With Parārkramabāhu I the great period of artistic activity of Polonnaruva began, and was continued under Niśśaṅka Malla during the brief decade (1187-96) of order and stability which his reign represented during which Polonnaruva reached the zenith of its development as a capital city.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 75) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Starting date signifies the defeat of Chola Empire and restoration of Sinalese power. End date coincides with abandonment of the capital after the death of King Magha. “Thus by 1070 Vijayabāhu had triumphed and the restoration of Sinhalese power was complete […] Māgha’s rule and its aftermath are a watershed in the history of the island, marking as they did the beginning of a new political order. For one thing Polonnaruva ceases to be the capital city after Māgha’s death in 1255.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 61, 63) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“Polonnaruva was abandoned after Māgha’s rule, and the next three kings ruled from Dambadeṇiya. One ruler made Yāpahuva his royal residence. There were both rock fortresses; so was Kuruṇägala, another site of royal power in this quest for safety against invasion from South India and the threat from the north. The last occasion when Polonnaruva served as the capital city was in the reign of Parākramabāhu III (1287–93), but this only illustrated the perilous position to which Sinhalese power was reduced: he ruled at Polonnaruva because of his subservience to the Pāṇḍayas.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 82) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Inferred by the following quote. “Once the political unification of the island had been re-established, Parākramabāhu followed Vijayabāhu I in keeping a tight check on separatist tendencies in the island, especially in Rohaṇa where particularism was a deeply ingrained political tradition. Rohaṇa did not accept its loss of autonomy without a struggle, and Parākramabāhu faced a formidable rebellion there in 1160 which he put down with great severity (there was a rebellion in the Rājaraṭa as well in 1168 and this too was ruthlessly crushed). All vestiges of its former autonomy were now purposefully eliminated, and as a result there was, in the heyday of the Polonnaruva kingdom, much less tolerance of particularism than under the Anurādhapura kings. As we shall see, the country was to pay dearly for this over-centralisation of authority in Polonnaruva.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 62) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“It is an Indo-European language (associated with north Indian Prakrit branch) that evolved from the foundational Sinhala Prakrit (which was in use until the third century CE), to Proto-Sinhala (until the seventh century CE), medieval Sinhala (twelfth century CE), and modern Sinhala (twelfth century CE to the present).” [1] “Tamil, a member of the Dravidian family of languages, is the most important literary language of southern India. First written in Brāhmī-derived Grantha, it developed a script of its own, called tamiz euttu in Tamil. Although it shares a common origin with Devanagari it differs from it significantly both in appearance and structure.” [2]
[1]: (Schug and Walimbe 2016, 582) Schug, Gwen Robbins, and Subhash R. Walimbe. 2016. A Companion to South Asia in the Past, 2016. Somerset: Wiley. Seshat URL:https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/7MXIBSHQ/collection
[2]: (Coulmas 2002, 140). Coulmas, Florian. 2002. Writing Systems An Introduction to Their Linguistic Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AHWVP84B/collection
“It is an Indo-European language (associated with north Indian Prakrit branch) that evolved from the foundational Sinhala Prakrit (which was in use until the third century CE), to Proto-Sinhala (until the seventh century CE), medieval Sinhala (twelfth century CE), and modern Sinhala (twelfth century CE to the present).” [1] “Tamil, a member of the Dravidian family of languages, is the most important literary language of southern India. First written in Brāhmī-derived Grantha, it developed a script of its own, called tamiz euttu in Tamil. Although it shares a common origin with Devanagari it differs from it significantly both in appearance and structure.” [2]
[1]: (Schug and Walimbe 2016, 582) Schug, Gwen Robbins, and Subhash R. Walimbe. 2016. A Companion to South Asia in the Past, 2016. Somerset: Wiley. Seshat URL:https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/7MXIBSHQ/collection
[2]: (Coulmas 2002, 140). Coulmas, Florian. 2002. Writing Systems An Introduction to Their Linguistic Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AHWVP84B/collection
“One of the distinctive features of the literature of the Polonnaruva period was the continued vitality of Pāli as the language of Sinhalese Buddhism. The tradition was still very much in favour of writing in Pāli rather than Sinhalese. The Pāli works of this period were mainly expositions or summaries of the works of the Pāli canon. There were also the tīkās explaining and supplementing the commentaries composed in the Anurādhapura era. The Dāṭhavaṁsa, a history of the tooth relic, was one of the more notable literary in the Pāli language. Its author, Mahānāma, is also credited with the first part Cūlavaṁsa, the continuation of the Mahāvaṁsa. The Pāli literature of this period bears the impression of the strong tonic effect of Sanskrit, which had not a no less significant influence on contemporary Sinhalese writing. The bulk of the Sinhalese works of this period are glossaries and translations from the Pāli canon. There were also two prose works by a thirteenth century author, Gurulugomi, the Amāvatura and the Dharmapradīpikāva, of which the former was more noteworthy; and two poems (of the late twelfth and early thirteenth century), the Sasadāvata and the Muvadevadāta, both based on Jātaka stories, and both greatly influenced by the Sanskrit works of Kālidāsa and Kumāradāsa.” [1] “The Tamil influence in Ceylon during the 86 years preceding the accession of Vijaya Báhu under the rule of the Chóla kings must have been to permeating that when Vijaya Báhu became king his environments and surroundings would have been practically Tamil. Is it therefore no matter for surprise that the Véḷaikkára army composed altogether of Tamils, should have caused the inscription to be inscribed in Tamil and in the Maṇipraváḷam style.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (Mudaliyár 1924, 267) Mudaliyár, C. Rásanáyagam. 1924. ‘Vitaya Bahu’s Inscription at Polonnaruwa.’ The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, Vol. 29: 77. Pp 226-280. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AWEGBR4C/collection
“One of the distinctive features of the literature of the Polonnaruva period was the continued vitality of Pāli as the language of Sinhalese Buddhism. The tradition was still very much in favour of writing in Pāli rather than Sinhalese. The Pāli works of this period were mainly expositions or summaries of the works of the Pāli canon. There were also the tīkās explaining and supplementing the commentaries composed in the Anurādhapura era. The Dāṭhavaṁsa, a history of the tooth relic, was one of the more notable literary in the Pāli language. Its author, Mahānāma, is also credited with the first part Cūlavaṁsa, the continuation of the Mahāvaṁsa. The Pāli literature of this period bears the impression of the strong tonic effect of Sanskrit, which had not a no less significant influence on contemporary Sinhalese writing. The bulk of the Sinhalese works of this period are glossaries and translations from the Pāli canon. There were also two prose works by a thirteenth century author, Gurulugomi, the Amāvatura and the Dharmapradīpikāva, of which the former was more noteworthy; and two poems (of the late twelfth and early thirteenth century), the Sasadāvata and the Muvadevadāta, both based on Jātaka stories, and both greatly influenced by the Sanskrit works of Kālidāsa and Kumāradāsa.” [1] “The Tamil influence in Ceylon during the 86 years preceding the accession of Vijaya Báhu under the rule of the Chóla kings must have been to permeating that when Vijaya Báhu became king his environments and surroundings would have been practically Tamil. Is it therefore no matter for surprise that the Véḷaikkára army composed altogether of Tamils, should have caused the inscription to be inscribed in Tamil and in the Maṇipraváḷam style.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (Mudaliyár 1924, 267) Mudaliyár, C. Rásanáyagam. 1924. ‘Vitaya Bahu’s Inscription at Polonnaruwa.’ The Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, Vol. 29: 77. Pp 226-280. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AWEGBR4C/collection
“As stated above, the transfer of the capital to Polonnaruva has been portrayed as connected with a religious shift towards a more pluralistic and eclectic patronage at state-level, incorporating Buddhist, Brahmanical and Saivite practices. Indrapala has suggested that in tandem with the widespread appearance of tenth-century Tamil inscriptions dated to the regal years of Cōḻa rulers, there was also an increase in Saiva temples. In the chronicles, it is also stated that Parākramabāhu I (r. 1153–86 CE) constructed twenty-four temples to the gods, and Pathmanathan has recorded the presence of at least fourteen temples within Polonnaruva. In support of this plurality, archaeological investigations at Polonnaruva have identified Saiva and Vaisnava shrines with bronze Nataraja, Śiva and Parvati images. A twelfth-century inscription of Niśśaṅkamalla (r. 1187–96 CE) at Dambulla recorded the construction of a Hindu temple as well as the restoration and construction of Buddhist temples. In Anurādhapura itself, structures north of Abhayagiri dating to the later phases of the city’s occupation were identified as ‘Hindu ruins’ on the basis of their architectural layout and the recovery of several lingams, although this identification has been contested. [1] “The patronage and protection afforded by ‘non-Buddhists’ is further reinforced by a Tamil inscription on a stone slab beside the Tooth Relic Temple in Polonnaruva. Known as the Aṭadāgē, this structure was built under the patronage of Vijayabāhu I (r. 1055–1110 CE) and the epigraph instructs guards from South India, Vēlaikkāras, to protect the Buddha’s Tooth Relic within (Figure 1.1). Part of a long tradition of ‘Sinhala’ states employing South Indian guards, the Vēlaikkāras are stated to be adherents of the Mahātantra, and this further highlights the diversity and complexity of identity, religiosity and the construction of royal legitimacy within medieval Sri Lanka. All these complexities are crucial for the consideration of evidence for potential signs of cosmopolitan practices in the archaeological record.” [2] “The inevitable result of the Cōḷa conquest was the Hindu-Brāhmanical and Saiva religious practices, Dravidian art and architecture, and the Tamil language itself became overwhelmingly powerful in their intrusive impact on the religion and culture of Sri Lanka. The period of the South Indian invasions of the Anurādhapura kingdom in the ninth and tenth centuries coincided with the decline of Buddhism in India and the collapse of important centres of Buddhist learning as a result of Muslim invasions. These processes proved to be irreversible. South Indian influence on Sri Lanka thereafter became exclusively Hindu in content. It is against this background that the recovery of Buddhism under the Polonnaruva kings needs to be reviewed. The most substantial contributions came from Vijayabāhu I and Parākramabāhu I. The unification of the saṅgha in the latter’s reign was one of the most significant events in the history of Sinhalese Buddhism […] The resuscitatory zeal of these two monarchs in particular demonstrated afresh the remarkable resilience of Sri Lankan Buddhism. Sinhalese bhikkhus maintained contacts with distant centres of Buddhism like Nepal and Tibet; they also made vigorous but unsuccessful attempts to spread their teachings in Bengal, apart from engaging in spirited disputes with their Theravādin colleagues in South India on questions relating to the interpretation of the canon. It was South-East Asia, however, that was most receptive to their teachings, and the expansion of Sinhalese Theravāda Buddhism in that region was an important trend in this cultural history during this period.” [3]
[1]: Coningham et al. 2017, 37) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
[2]: Coningham et al. 2017, 25-26) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
[3]: (De Silva 1981, 73-74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“As stated above, the transfer of the capital to Polonnaruva has been portrayed as connected with a religious shift towards a more pluralistic and eclectic patronage at state-level, incorporating Buddhist, Brahmanical and Saivite practices. Indrapala has suggested that in tandem with the widespread appearance of tenth-century Tamil inscriptions dated to the regal years of Cōḻa rulers, there was also an increase in Saiva temples. In the chronicles, it is also stated that Parākramabāhu I (r. 1153–86 CE) constructed twenty-four temples to the gods, and Pathmanathan has recorded the presence of at least fourteen temples within Polonnaruva. In support of this plurality, archaeological investigations at Polonnaruva have identified Saiva and Vaisnava shrines with bronze Nataraja, Śiva and Parvati images. A twelfth-century inscription of Niśśaṅkamalla (r. 1187–96 CE) at Dambulla recorded the construction of a Hindu temple as well as the restoration and construction of Buddhist temples. In Anurādhapura itself, structures north of Abhayagiri dating to the later phases of the city’s occupation were identified as ‘Hindu ruins’ on the basis of their architectural layout and the recovery of several lingams, although this identification has been contested. [1] “The patronage and protection afforded by ‘non-Buddhists’ is further reinforced by a Tamil inscription on a stone slab beside the Tooth Relic Temple in Polonnaruva. Known as the Aṭadāgē, this structure was built under the patronage of Vijayabāhu I (r. 1055–1110 CE) and the epigraph instructs guards from South India, Vēlaikkāras, to protect the Buddha’s Tooth Relic within (Figure 1.1). Part of a long tradition of ‘Sinhala’ states employing South Indian guards, the Vēlaikkāras are stated to be adherents of the Mahātantra, and this further highlights the diversity and complexity of identity, religiosity and the construction of royal legitimacy within medieval Sri Lanka. All these complexities are crucial for the consideration of evidence for potential signs of cosmopolitan practices in the archaeological record.” [2] “The inevitable result of the Cōḷa conquest was the Hindu-Brāhmanical and Saiva religious practices, Dravidian art and architecture, and the Tamil language itself became overwhelmingly powerful in their intrusive impact on the religion and culture of Sri Lanka. The period of the South Indian invasions of the Anurādhapura kingdom in the ninth and tenth centuries coincided with the decline of Buddhism in India and the collapse of important centres of Buddhist learning as a result of Muslim invasions. These processes proved to be irreversible. South Indian influence on Sri Lanka thereafter became exclusively Hindu in content. It is against this background that the recovery of Buddhism under the Polonnaruva kings needs to be reviewed. The most substantial contributions came from Vijayabāhu I and Parākramabāhu I. The unification of the saṅgha in the latter’s reign was one of the most significant events in the history of Sinhalese Buddhism […] The resuscitatory zeal of these two monarchs in particular demonstrated afresh the remarkable resilience of Sri Lankan Buddhism. Sinhalese bhikkhus maintained contacts with distant centres of Buddhism like Nepal and Tibet; they also made vigorous but unsuccessful attempts to spread their teachings in Bengal, apart from engaging in spirited disputes with their Theravādin colleagues in South India on questions relating to the interpretation of the canon. It was South-East Asia, however, that was most receptive to their teachings, and the expansion of Sinhalese Theravāda Buddhism in that region was an important trend in this cultural history during this period.” [3]
[1]: Coningham et al. 2017, 37) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
[2]: Coningham et al. 2017, 25-26) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
[3]: (De Silva 1981, 73-74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“Vijayabāhu’s role in the prolonged resistance to Cōḷa rule which culminated eventually in their expulsion from the island would by itself have ensured his position as one of the greatest figures in the island’s history, but his achievements in the more humdrum fields of administration and economic regeneration were no less substantial. Infusing fresh energy into the machinery of administration, he established firm control over the whole island, and presided over both a rehabilitation of the island’s irrigation network and the resuscitation of Buddhism. The established religion had suffered a severe setback during the rule of the Cōḷas who, naturally enough, had given precedence to Saivite Hinduism.” [1] “The resuscitatory zeal of these two monarchs in particular demonstrated afresh the remarkable resilience of Sri Lankan Buddhism. Sinhalese bhikkhus maintained contacts with distant centres of Buddhism like Nepal and Tibet; they also made vigorous but unsuccessful attempts to spread their teachings in Bengal, apart from engaging in spirited disputes with their Theravādin colleagues in South India on questions relating to the interpretation of the canon. It was South-East Asia, however, that was most receptive to their teachings, and the expansion of Sinhalese Theravāda Buddhism in that region was an important trend in this cultural history during this period.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 61) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (De Silva 1981, 73-74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“Vijayabāhu’s role in the prolonged resistance to Cōḷa rule which culminated eventually in their expulsion from the island would by itself have ensured his position as one of the greatest figures in the island’s history, but his achievements in the more humdrum fields of administration and economic regeneration were no less substantial. Infusing fresh energy into the machinery of administration, he established firm control over the whole island, and presided over both a rehabilitation of the island’s irrigation network and the resuscitation of Buddhism. The established religion had suffered a severe setback during the rule of the Cōḷas who, naturally enough, had given precedence to Saivite Hinduism.” [1] “The resuscitatory zeal of these two monarchs in particular demonstrated afresh the remarkable resilience of Sri Lankan Buddhism. Sinhalese bhikkhus maintained contacts with distant centres of Buddhism like Nepal and Tibet; they also made vigorous but unsuccessful attempts to spread their teachings in Bengal, apart from engaging in spirited disputes with their Theravādin colleagues in South India on questions relating to the interpretation of the canon. It was South-East Asia, however, that was most receptive to their teachings, and the expansion of Sinhalese Theravāda Buddhism in that region was an important trend in this cultural history during this period.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 61) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (De Silva 1981, 73-74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
levels.1. Capital :2. Major religious sites (including monasteries) ::3. Provinces (inferred) :::4. Towns (inferred) ::::5. Villages :::::“As in the late Anurādhapura period, however, the most salient manifestation of feudalism lay in the immunities granted to the monasteries. These now extended beyond the conventional rights to labour and the whole or part of the revenue of the block of land or village thus granted, to the transfer of fiscal as well as administrative and judicial authority over the lands thus held. As a result, the monasteries and their functionaries came to be entrusted with much of the local administrative duties traditionally performed by the king’s officials; it would appear that some new administrative structures were developed to cope with this significant enlargement of the role of monasteries in the social system […] At the base of the structure were the village authorities —possibly village headmen—who were entrusted with the collection of taxes due to the king from each village; these were delivered to the king’s officials during their annual tours.” [1] “As stated above, the transfer of the capital to Polonnaruva has been portrayed as connected with a religious shift towards a more pluralistic and eclectic patronage at state-level, incorporating Buddhist, Brahmanical and Saivite practices. Indrapala has suggested that in tandem with the widespread appearance of tenth-century Tamil inscriptions dated to the regal years of Cōḻa rulers, there was also an increase in Saiva temples. In the chronicles, it is also stated that Parākramabāhu I (r. 1153–86 CE) constructed twenty-four temples to the gods, and Pathmanathan has recorded the presence of at least fourteen temples within Polonnaruva. In support of this plurality, archaeological investigations at Polonnaruva have identified Saiva and Vaisnava shrines with bronze Nataraja, Śiva and Parvati images. A twelfth-century inscription of Niśśaṅkamalla (r. 1187–96 CE) at Dambulla recorded the construction of a Hindu temple as well as the restoration and construction of Buddhist temples. In Anurādhapura itself, structures north of Abhayagiri dating to the later phases of the city’s occupation were identified as ‘Hindu ruins’ on the basis of their architectural layout and the recovery of several lingams, although this identification has been contested. [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 69-70) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: Coningham et al. 2017, 37) Coningham et al. 2017. ‘Archaeology and cosmopolitanism in early historic and medieval Sri Lanka.’ Sri Lanka at the Crossroads of History. Edited by Zoltán Biedermann and Alan Strathern. London: UCL Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/DCQMW8E3/collection
Suggested by the presence of market towns. “One of the most notable features in the economic history of the period extending from the ninth century to the end of the Polonnaruva kingdom was the expansion of trade within the country. The date available at is present is too meagre for an analysis of the development of this trade, or indeed for a detailed description of its special characteristics, but there is evidence of the emergence of merchant ‘corporations’, the growth of market towns linked by well-known trade routes, and the development of a local, that is to say, regional coinage.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 71-72) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“The Polonnaruva kings were the heirs to several centuries of experience in irrigation technology. But they themselves—and especially Parākramabāhu I—made a distinctive contribution of their own in honing these techniques to cope with the special requirements of the immense irrigation projects constructed at this time. There was, for instance, the colossal size of the Parākrama Samudra (the sea of Parākrama) which, with an embankment rising to an average height of 40 feet and stretching over its entire length of 8 miles, was by far the largest irrigation tank constructed in ancient Sri Lanka…Refinement of irrigation technology, was demonstrated also in the three weirs built across the Däduru-Oya, the only river in the western part of the dry zone to provide anything like a perennial supply of water.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 68) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“The Polonnaruva kings were the heirs to several centuries of experience in irrigation technology. But they themselves—and especially Parākramabāhu I—made a distinctive contribution of their own in honing these techniques to cope with the special requirements of the immense irrigation projects constructed at this time. There was, for instance, the colossal size of the Parākrama Samudra (the sea of Parākrama) which, with an embankment rising to an average height of 40 feet and stretching over its entire length of 8 miles, was by far the largest irrigation tank constructed in ancient Sri Lanka…Refinement of irrigation technology, was demonstrated also in the three weirs built across the Däduru-Oya, the only river in the western part of the dry zone to provide anything like a perennial supply of water.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 68) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Viharas. “The Gal Vihāra sculptures (in the reign of Parākramabāhu I) are the glory of Polonnaruva, and the summit of its artistic achievement. The four great statues of the Buddha which comprise this complex, representing the three main positions—the seated, the standing and the recumbent, are cut out in a row from a horizontal escarpment of streaked granite. Each of these statues was originally sheltered by its own image house. The consummate skills with which the peace of the enlightenment has been depicted, in an extraordinarily successful blend of serenity and strength, has seldom been equalled by any other Buddha image in Sri Lanka. Of similar nobility of conception, and magnitude is the colossal figure (of a sage, as some scholars would have it, or a monarch, as others insist) overlooking the bund of Tōpāväva.” [1] “Of the architectural monuments attributed to the reign of Niśśaṅka Malla the most unforgettable is the collection of temples and vihāras in the so-called Great Quadrangle, which has been described as among the ‘most beautiful and satisfying proportioned buildings in the entire Indian world’. The Niśśaṅka-latā maṇḍapaya is a unique type of Sinhalese architectural monument: a cluster of granite columns shaped like lotus stems with capitals in the form of opening buds, within a raised platform, all contributing to a general effect ‘of extreme chastity and Baroque fancy [unsurpassed] in any Indian shrine.’” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74-75) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (De Silva 1981, 75) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
"Apart from the traditional ports of the north and north-west of the island, and on the east coast, those of the west coast too became important in this trade. Besides, the island’s numerous bays, anchorages and road-steads offered adequate shelter for the sailing ships of this period. Trade in the Indian Ocean at this time was dominated by the Arabs, who were among the leading and most intrepid sailors of the era…Luxury articles were the main commodities to this category belonged Sri Lanka’s gems and pearls.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 71-72) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Inferred from the following quote “One of the most notable features in the economic history of the period extending from the ninth century to the end of the Polonnaruva kingdom was the expansion of trade within the country. The date available at is present is too meagre for an analysis of the development of this trade, or indeed for a detailed description of its special characteristics, but there is evidence of the emergence of merchant ‘corporations’, the growth of market towns linked by well-known trade routes, and the development of a local, that is to say, regional coinage. Tolls and other levies on this trade yielded a considerable income to the state. There was at the same time a substantial revenue from customs dues on external trade although the data we have is too scanty to compute with any precision the duties levied on the various export and import commodities. Sri Lanka was a vital link in the great trade routes between east and west, of importance in ‘transit’ trade due to her advantageous geographical location, and in the ‘terminal’ trade on account of her natural products such as gems, pearls and timber. Apart from the traditional ports of the north and north-west of the island, and on the east coast, those of the west coast too became important in this trade. Besides, the island’s numerous bays, anchorages and road-steads offered adequate shelter for the sailing ships of this period. Trade in the Indian Ocean at this time was dominated by the Arabs, who were among the leading and most intrepid sailors of the era…Luxury articles were the main commodities to this category belonged Sri Lanka’s gems and pearls.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 71-72) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Trading emporia inferred from the following quote “One of the most notable features in the economic history of the period extending from the ninth century to the end of the Polonnaruva kingdom was the expansion of trade within the country. The date available at is present is too meagre for an analysis of the development of this trade, or indeed for a detailed description of its special characteristics, but there is evidence of the emergence of merchant ‘corporations’, the growth of market towns linked by well-known trade routes, and the development of a local, that is to say, regional coinage. Tolls and other levies on this trade yielded a considerable income to the state. There was at the same time a substantial revenue from customs dues on external trade although the data we have is too scanty to compute with any precision the duties levied on the various export and import commodities. Sri Lanka was a vital link in the great trade routes between east and west, of importance in ‘transit’ trade due to her advantageous geographical location, and in the ‘terminal’ trade on account of her natural products such as gems, pearls and timber. Apart from the traditional ports of the north and north-west of the island, and on the east coast, those of the west coast too became important in this trade. Besides, the island’s numerous bays, anchorages and road-steads offered adequate shelter for the sailing ships of this period. Trade in the Indian Ocean at this time was dominated by the Arabs, who were among the leading and most intrepid sailors of the era…Luxury articles were the main commodities to this category belonged Sri Lanka’s gems and pearls.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 71-72) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“One of the distinctive features of the literature of the Polonnaruva period was the continued vitality of Pāli as the language of Sinhalese Buddhism. The tradition was still very much in favour of writing in Pāli rather than Sinhalese. The Pāli works of this period were mainly expositions or summaries of the works of the Pāli canon. There were also the tīkās explaining and supplementing the commentaries composed in the Anurādhapura era. The Dāṭhavaṁsa, a history of the tooth relic, was one of the more notable literary in the Pāli language. Its author, Mahānāma, is also credited with the first part Cūlavaṁsa, the continuation of the Mahāvaṁsa. The Pāli literature of this period bears the impression of the strong tonic effect of Sanskrit, which had not a no less significant influence on contemporary Sinhalese writing. The bulk of the Sinhalese works of this period are glossaries and translations from the Pāli canon. There were also two prose works by a thirteenth century author, Gurulugomi, the Amāvatura and the Dharmapradīpikāva, of which the former was more noteworthy; and two poems (of the late twelfth and early thirteenth century), the Sasadāvata and the Muvadevadāta, both based on Jātaka stories, and both greatly influenced by the Sanskrit works of Kālidāsa and Kumāradāsa.” [1] “The Vesaturudā Sanne, an exegetical work written in the period of the Polonnaruva kingdom, compares people clad in gold-coloured clothes and wearing golden ornaments to kiṇihiri trees in full bloom. It also states that kiṇihiri trees in bloom looked as if they were covered with golden nets.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (Gunawardana 1990, 61). Gunawardana, R.A.L.H. 1990. ‘The people of the lion: the Sinhala identity and ideology in history and historiography’. Sri Lanka History and the Roots of Conflict. Edited by Jonathan Spencer. London and New York: Routledge. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/B3GVR8EH/collection
“One of the distinctive features of the literature of the Polonnaruva period was the continued vitality of Pāli as the language of Sinhalese Buddhism. The tradition was still very much in favour of writing in Pāli rather than Sinhalese. The Pāli works of this period were mainly expositions or summaries of the works of the Pāli canon. There were also the tīkās explaining and supplementing the commentaries composed in the Anurādhapura era. The Dāṭhavaṁsa, a history of the tooth relic, was one of the more notable literary in the Pāli language. Its author, Mahānāma, is also credited with the first part Cūlavaṁsa, the continuation of the Mahāvaṁsa. The Pāli literature of this period bears the impression of the strong tonic effect of Sanskrit, which had not a no less significant influence on contemporary Sinhalese writing. The bulk of the Sinhalese works of this period are glossaries and translations from the Pāli canon. There were also two prose works by a thirteenth century author, Gurulugomi, the Amāvatura and the Dharmapradīpikāva, of which the former was more noteworthy; and two poems (of the late twelfth and early thirteenth century), the Sasadāvata and the Muvadevadāta, both based on Jātaka stories, and both greatly influenced by the Sanskrit works of Kālidāsa and Kumāradāsa.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“As Georg Bühler, whose groundbreaking Indian Palaeography was first published in 1896, observed ‘the great simplicity of the [Tamil] alphabet...is explained by the phonetics of the Tamil language’ (Bühler 1980: 93). Like the other Indian scripts the Tamil writing system is a syllabic alphabet. Its basic consonant signs (table 7.10) include the inherent vowel a. Other postconsonantal Vs are written with obligatory diacritics (table 7.11), while twelve independent signs are provided for initial Vs (table 7.12)”. [1] “Sinhala has its own script. Its alphabet is known as hoodiya. Only Sinhala is written with the letters of the Sinhala hoodiya. The Sinhala writing system is largely phonetic in that one can understand how words are pronounced simply by looking at their spelling.” [2]
[1]: (Coulmas 2002, 140). Coulmas, Florian. 2002. Writing Systems An Introduction to Their Linguistic Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AHWVP84B/collection
[2]: (Chandralal 2010, 21) Chandralal, Dileep. 2010. Sinhala. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AC8BQ53V/collection
“As Georg Bühler, whose groundbreaking Indian Palaeography was first published in 1896, observed ‘the great simplicity of the [Tamil] alphabet...is explained by the phonetics of the Tamil language’ (Bühler 1980: 93). Like the other Indian scripts the Tamil writing system is a syllabic alphabet. Its basic consonant signs (table 7.10) include the inherent vowel a. Other postconsonantal Vs are written with obligatory diacritics (table 7.11), while twelve independent signs are provided for initial Vs (table 7.12)”. [1] “Yet another set of letters prevails there without corresponding phonetic values: Although Sinhala is considered notable among the major Indo-Aryan languages in having no aspirate stop phonemes (Coates & De Silva 1960), the written variety had preserved the symbols for aspiration in numerous words it has borrowed from Pali and Sanskrit.” [2]
[1]: (Coulmas 2002, 140). Coulmas, Florian. 2002. Writing Systems An Introduction to Their Linguistic Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AHWVP84B/collection
[2]: (Chandralal 2010, 22) Chandralal, Dileep. 2010. Sinhala. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/AC8BQ53V/collection
Buddhist and Hindu texts. “Just as Pāli was the language of Sinhalese Buddhism, Sanskrit, was the sacred language of the Brāhmans (and Hinduism) and of Mahāyānist scriptures were written in that language.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 59) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Buddhist and Hindu texts. Exegetical texts. “Just as Pāli was the language of Sinhalese Buddhism, Sanskrit, was the sacred language of the Brāhmans (and Hinduism) and of Mahāyānist scriptures were written in that language.” [1] “The Vesaturudā Sanne, an exegetical work written in the period of the Polonnaruva kingdom, compares people clad in gold-coloured clothes and wearing golden ornaments to kiṇihiri trees in full bloom. It also states that kiṇihiri trees in bloom looked as if they were covered with golden nets.” [2]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 59) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
[2]: (Gunawardana 1990, 61). Gunawardana, R.A.L.H. 1990. ‘The people of the lion: the Sinhala identity and ideology in history and historiography’. Sri Lanka History and the Roots of Conflict. Edited by Jonathan Spencer. London and New York: Routledge. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/B3GVR8EH/collection
“One of the distinctive features of the literature of the Polonnaruva period was the continued vitality of Pāli as the language of Sinhalese Buddhism. The tradition was still very much in favour of writing in Pāli rather than Sinhalese. The Pāli works of this period were mainly expositions or summaries of the works of the Pāli canon. There were also the tīkās explaining and supplementing the commentaries composed in the Anurādhapura era. The Dāṭhavaṁsa, a history of the tooth relic, was one of the more notable literary in the Pāli language. Its author, Mahānāma, is also credited with the first part Cūlavaṁsa, the continuation of the Mahāvaṁsa. The Pāli literature of this period bears the impression of the strong tonic effect of Sanskrit, which had not a no less significant influence on contemporary Sinhalese writing.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“There were also two prose works by a thirteenth century author, Gurulugomi, the Amāvatura and the Dharmapradīpikāva, of which the former was more noteworthy; and two poems (of the late twelfth and early thirteenth century), the Sasadāvata and the Muvadevadāta, both based on Jātaka stories, and both greatly influenced by the Sanskrit works of Kālidāsa and Kumāradāsa.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 74) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
“One of the most notable features in the economic history of the period extending from the ninth century to the end of the Polonnaruva kingdom was the expansion of trade within the country. The date available at is present is too meagre for an analysis of the development of this trade, or indeed for a detailed description of its special characteristics, but there is evidence of the emergence of merchant ‘corporations’, the growth of market towns linked by well-known trade routes, and the development of a local, that is to say, regional coinage.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 71-72) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection
Grain. “At the base of the structure were the village authorities —possibly village headmen—who were entrusted with the collection of taxes due to the king from each village; these were delivered to the king’s officials during their annual tours. The fact that these taxes were paid partly at least in grain and other agricultural produce —which, being more or less persishable, could not be stored indefinitely by the officials who collected them—may have been a guarantee against extortionate levies on the peasantry.” [1]
[1]: (De Silva 1981, 69-70) De Silva, K.M. 1981. A History of Sri Lanka. London: C. Hurst & Company, Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/7F5SEVNA/items/4R6DQVHZ/collection