Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c21.31

c21.31

The beautiful shell trumpet (*hak-geḍiya*) of Pl. XLI., 1, is said to have been given by Narēndra Siṃha to a temple in Uḍa Nuvara; it is certainly as old as the earlier part of the eighteenth century, and is one of the finest pieces of Sinhalese craftsmanship illustrated. The shell is engraved and the incisions filled with red lac, and is mounted in brass, damascened with silver. The metal mounting terminates in a complete *śerapēndiya*, with clasped legs and an extension of the tail passing round the mouth of the shell and ending in a large scroll.