Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c15.89

c15.89

The art of turning wood is indigenous; but I am not sure that the method of Pl. VI., 5 is so. The ivory turner's lathe shown in Pl. VI., 4 is certainly a traditional one; it consists of a large concentrically grooved spindle (*liyana kanda*), set in two posts sunk into the ground; the object to be turned is fastened to the projecting end; the spindle is turned by a bow (like the drill of Fig. 93) to enable one man to turn and grind simultaneously. Carpenters now use the wheel-turned lathe exclusively, but I have seen a large grooved spindle of the older type, and have no doubt it represents the original and indigenous form of lathe.