CULTURE-SRI LANKA: Vandals ‘Rake Up’ Sri Lanka’s Past

By Feizal Samath Reprint | | Print |

Feizal Samath

COLOMBO, Sep 24 1998 (IPS) - Believing stories of fabulous treasures buried at Sri Lanka’s historical sites and ancient Buddhist temples, gangs of vandals are scouring the countryside causing immense damage by literally raking up the past.

With incidents of vandalism increasing in recent months, the government has resorted to seeking the help of ordinary people to put a stop to the desecration of holy places and ancient monuments.

‘Protect our antiques,’ pleaded Shiran Deraniyagala, Director- General of Sri Lanka’s Department of Archaeology in a newspaper advertisement last week, as the government directly appealed for public assistance.

‘They destroy ruthlessly our invaluable ancient national heritage, which was bequeathed to us by our forefathers from time immemorial. Should we allow this?’ the advertisement asked.

It urged the public to act fast and inform the police or the department on listed hot lines about destruction of ancient sites and theft of artefacts.

Under new laws introduced last May, the government has enhanced penalties and made these offences non-bailable. Destroying or stealing antiquities carries a penalty of upto USD 7,000 or between two and five years in jail.

Archaeologists, however, feel a much stiffer punishment may be necessary to stop the ‘culture vultures.’ Ironically, the looters may be looking for something that is not there.

Deraniyagala says that recent media focus on the thefts may actually be promoting treasure hunting. “People get ideas of treasure hunting when such stories begin to appear,” he said.

There is a belief that the old temples and historical monuments scattered across Sri Lanka contain all kinds of priceless treasure hidden underground or perhaps inside statues.

Archaeology Department officials reject this assumption, saying items deposited at these sites are not as valuable as one would expect. Treasure hunters who believe there are pots of gold, sapphires and rubies at these sites are likely to be disappointed.

But even less-than-priceless Sri Lankan artefacts appear to have a ready market abroad and Deraniyagala believes that they are regularly smuggled out through the country’s only international airport.

Treasure hunting is not new in this island country. It has been in existence over the years, but the rate at which incidents of vandalism occur has increased sharply this year.

According to official figures, incidents of plunder of ancient sites were 145 in the period January 1991 to mid-September 1998. However, the bulk of the incidents occurred in the past two years.

Sri Lanka with a 2,500-year-old civilisation has 12,000 documented sites and monuments of historical value. The Archaeological Department, which is responsible for their maintenance and protection, has only 40 men to handle this onerous task.

In all, the department is charged with looking after a total of 100,000 sites covering over 16,000 acres of land across the island.

“This is inadequate if we are to protect these sites. A tiny department like ours can hardly be expected to do this properly without the necessary staff,” Deraniyagala laments.

Ancient sites with complexes of palaces, temples and monasteries boasting rich works of art and sculpture are located mostly in the north central region which includes Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Dambulla and Yapahuwa.

Writers down the ages have waxed eloquent on the artistry and skill of Sri Lanka’s ancient craftsmen, describing the monuments in cities such as Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa as ‘poetry in stone.’

The country’s rich cultural heritage attracts thousands of foreign tourists. Most of the robberies, however, occur at smaller sites outside these cities, possibly because they are unguarded unlike the more prominent places.

Last month, five priceless guardstones were removed from a 2,000-year-old site which has two ancient Buddhist shrines and a dagoba (domed edifice), in Polonnaruwa. Several years ago, treasure hunters damaged two statues of the Buddha in one of these shrines.

The site was constructed by a seventh century king and

partially destroyed by South Indian invaders in the 11th century. It was excavated and renovated in 1934 by Professor Senerath Paranavitharana, the country’s most eminent archaeologist.

The August incident shocked many, including President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. The robbers had also destroyed the foundation at the site, digging deep and ripping out the guardstones.

Kumaratunga has ordered Police chief Lucky Kodituwakku to set up a special police unit to investigate the looting and plunder crisis.

Earlier this month, an army major and two soldiers were detained after they tried to sell a stolen statue of a Hindu god to a local businessman for USD 51,000.

In recent times such vandalism has resulted in the damage of a Buddha statue – said to be one of the best five in the country – at Tissamaharama in the south and destroyed two others at Kurunegala.

Four 18th century canvases have also been robbed from a north central Buddhist temple and numerous ivory carvings, bronze statues, gold and ivory caskets and lion statues stolen.

Deraniyagala says that the treasure hunters must be stopped. “These people have no sense of value. They are damaging our heritage,” he added.