Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c11.s1.7

c11.s1.7

It may be noted here, that there can be little doubt of the eastern origin of heraldry. The heroes of the Mahābhārata had each his own device. We have seen in the description of the great *perahera*, how each district of the Kandyan kingdom had its own flag and device; also that the *makara* is the device on the banner of the Indian Eros. So there need be no occasion for surprise at recognizing in the arms of Austria and of Russia, the very ‘double-headed eagle,’ an Indian form which we find in Ceylon as the device of the Three Kōrales. The historic evidence for the migration of this particular symbol, by direct contact, is regarded as complete.*