A History of Fine Art in India and Ceylon, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day c9.s2.116

c9.s2.116

‘The stone was in four pieces, but these have been put together and the statue placed erect on its circular base. The figure, which is 6 feet 5 inches in height, originally stood facing the *dāgaba*, and doubtless in a devotional attitude; the arms, however, are broken off close to the shoulders and cannot be found. The king is clothed in the “dhoti”, or waist-cloth wrapped round the loins and falling to the ankles, the upper part of the body being uncovered. The head-dress consists of a plain and slightly elevated pear-shaped cap, encircled by a jewelled band, or diadem; the ears are adorned with pendant ear-rings, and the neck with a jewelled neck-piece. The base is carved to represent an expanded lotus-flower, and is precisely similar in design to that found at the Thūpārāma *dāgaba*. Both statue and base are much weather-worn, although originally sheltered beneath a covered structure of which three stone octagonal pillars, formerly surmounted by capitals, are the only remains.’¹