Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c22.162

c22.162

*Jewellery* Many references are made to jewellery in the Mahāvaṃsa. One description may be quoted: “And then on the day of the full moon the king adorned himself with all the grace of a god, with a diadem and a chain of gold and bracelets and precious ornaments of such kind thickly set with divers gems. And many hundred women of the queen’s chamber, whose forms, beautifully attired, were like those of goddesses for elegance, accompanied him, and many chieftains also, of great fame, clothed with divers robes and jewels and glittering ornaments. And the earth sunk, as it were, with the weight of this great multitude, and of the troops of horses and elephants in their trappings of shining gold, and of the worshippers who honoured the Cetiya with offerings of lamps which they carried on their bodies. And every quarter thereof was covered, as it were, with parasols and banners and chowries; and the caverns seemed to burst asunder with the sounds of divers instruments of music; and the eyes of all the people were filled with tears of joy by reason of the exceeding great beauty of the sight; and the caskets and flags and vases and fans and pots and other utensils of gold sent forth rays which made all the place to seem yellow.” (Mahāvaṃsa, Ch. LXXVI.) There are also numerable references to offerings of jewels and ornaments to the Māligāva and other temples.