South India and her Muhammadan Invaders c13.s1.58

c13.s1.58

2. *Battelar*.—This is a place, where according to Marco Polo, the pearl fishers collected first before putting out to sea. From the description that he gives in Chapter XVI of Book III (Vol. ii, p. 331) it is clear that he is referring to a place of this name on the Indian coast and not to the place of the name in Ceylon. Ibn Batuta’s Batthalah is the place of the name in Ceylon, and that is undoubtedly Puttalam. The Battelar of Marco Polo seems to be a confusion by analogy, and refers undoubtedly to the Vēdāḷai of the Hindus. Vēdāḷai is just at the head of the Gulf and on the south side of what is now the peninsula of Maṇḍapam. In the immediate neighbourhood, there is another harbour called Tōṇitturai, meaning a place of assemblage for boats. It seems therefore that Vēdāḷai is the Battelar of Marco Polo. This probability finds confirmation as the place was regarded of sufficient consequence to be taken possession of by the Ceylon general in his war against Kulaśēkhara for the reason apparently that it was the starting point for the navy of Kulaśēkhara.