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Old 6th October 2012, 01:02 PM   #20
Ibrahiim al Balooshi
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Salaams All ~

''Makara'' is a Sanskrit word which means "sea dragon" or "water-monster" and in Tibetan language it is called the "chu-srin", and also denotes a hybrid creature. It is the origin of the word for crocodile 'mugger' (मगर) in Hindi. The English word 'mugger' evolved meaning one who sneaks up and attacks another. The name is applied to the Mugger crocodile, the most common crocodile in India, and is descriptive of its aggressive feeding behavior.

It would seem that in all respects the Makara Hilt was ideal for incorporation onto the Kastane sword. It achieves honorific almost heraldic importance reflecting ancient religious artefacts, beliefs, architecture and recognition as a mythological fabulous creature.

For those reasons I find myself fighting the corner marked Home Grown Weapon. "The Kastane".

What I cannot see is a window through which this icon suddenly appears as a Portuguese, Dutch or British incorporation onto a Sri Lankan sword design. Portuguese swords were Portuguese, in design and inscription but the Kastane is not in that orchestra. Later the Dutch seem to have hijacked the blade and marked variants sporting the VOC marks are common but although books aspire to explain that EIC marks exist; I admit to seeing none as yet.

Anyway it is perhaps irrelevant since we are not that interested in the 3 invading ownership periods, rather, we need to get at the earlier known dealings i.e. between the Portuguese and Sri Lankan kingdoms of the Karava and Kandyans and in the build up before actual Portuguese dominance. Once the entire Island was taken over and ruled by the Dutch then the British the vagaries of outside dominance appear to shroud the Kastane story in thick impenetrable clouds.

The entire muddled load of brass copies appearing in Europe via Egypt (I assume Suez if indeed they were produced in Sri Lanka) in the 18th/ 19thC thence to Algeria and Morocco and beyond as Belly dancing swords needs to be ring fenced as irrelevant cheap castings. More than likely they were created in brass molding works throughout Europe also. It appears that they were refitted or made with the hilt reversed and the blades were never sharpened as to balance better on the performers head !

The weapon needs to be viewed in context with its use within the different kingdoms at the time the Portuguese assumed part control thus;

Part 1 will cover the Kandyan Kingdom 1593-1815.
Part 2 at my next post will deal with the Karava (The Sri Lankan fighting class) Kingdom.

The notes below are mostly quotations rearranged and paragraphed for easier handling and meant as Library records in the advent of further research etc... However, almost as a conclusion to the following extracts I consider that the Kandyan Kingdom was well placed through its established Royal Workshops to turn out all the requirements for the Kastane using locally employed artisans.

What needs to be understood about the Kandyan kingdom is that they were never taken over by the Portuguese. They fought many wars and skirmishes with each other but the Kandyan Dynasty never succumbed.

It would seem likely that the Kastane if it was made in the Kandyan Royal and other workshops would have enjoyed a degree of freedom ... to wear in public and as a secondary fighting dagger, short sword/and or for wearing at court.

Some further work is needed to view the restriction on such weapons being displayed during this dynasty's time span; The question "Could Kandyans wear swords during the time of Kandyan kings"? appears as "They could not". Even the highest Adigars could only wear a short knife as part of their ceremonial dress. Did the Kastane then adopt or "morph" into a short blade dagger?

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.


Notes; Quote "Arts and Crafts in the Kandyan Kingdom
by ANURDHA SENEVIRATNA
Monday, 30 March 2009
Speaking of arts and crafts during the Kandyan period which is considered the time between 1593-1815 with Kandy as the Capital we notice several aspects of art and crafts. From Architectural point of view Buddhist temples and deistic shrines built during this period occupies a prominent place. They include monuments such as Len Vihara, Tampita Vihara and Ambalamas.

The Buddhist physician, John Davy, writing an “Account of the Interior of Ceylon” (1821:104-105) described the royal palace of the last Kings of Kandy. He gives us a long list of official attached to the place. Among them were, the officers in charge of music, Dance and handicrafts. The Ran Avuda Maduwe Lekam Mahattaya was the Secretary of the Golden Arms. The Avudage Vannaku Nilame was the officer in charge of the Armoury. The Netum illangame Muhandiram Nilame was in charge of the Department of Dance. The Kavikara Maduwe Muhandiram was in charge of the court of Musicians. The Wahala Ilangame Muhandiram Nilame was in charge of the Royal Dance Ensemble. The Tamboru Purampattukara Muhandiram Nilame was in charge of the musicians who played the Tamboru and Trumpet.

The most skilled craftsmen in the country were selected from among several thousand workers and were raised to the rank of Royal craftsmen. They were attached to the royal palace itself. These masters craftsmen worked within four workshops called the Pattal Hatara: (1) Abharana Pattale (the workshops of the jewelers); (2) Rankadu Pattale (the work shop of the craftsmen engaged in making golden swords); (3) Sinhasana Pattale (the work shop of the craftsmen engaged in making the royal throne which included painters and ivory carvers) and (4) the Otunu Pattale (consisted of craftsmen engaged n making the Royal Crown). The chief of the work shop was called the Mulachari and he was in attendance at the Royal place.

Each Department or Workshop was in charge of a Kankanama or a supervisor, sometimes called a Muhandiram or Hangediya according to the type of craft. It was considered a high honour and prestige for an artist at the time to achieve this distinction. He not only enjoyed prestige but also royal privileges such as land grants and royal titles. The status of the artist was something that the kings had honoured from the remote past.

There were also 14 offices in charge of Baddas (Departments). They were organized on a caste basis to perform certain duties to the palace, such as supplying clothes, pots, mats and various other necessities. During the time of the Kandyan Kingdom, there were two such Departments, one for the Kandyan areas and the other for the Low Country areas.

Besides the functions attached to the royal palace these craftsmen were also organized under the district administration headed by a chieftain called the Dissave. The artists and the craftsmen received patronage from the king himself who represented the central administration; the Disave at the district level; the lay chiefs if the temples of gods (devale) known as the Basnayake Nilames and the Buddhist temple (viharas)headed by the Diawadana Nilame of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in the Kandy.

While government administration supported various categories of artists and craftsmen by means of land grants and other rewards for their services to the royal place, and to the chiefs of the districts, the viharas and devales also gave patronage to the artists and the craftsmen for the services performed for these places of worship included, the painters, sculptors, drummers, and dancers as well as other craftsmen such as the blacksmiths, the silversmiths and the goldsmiths.

The various artists and craftsmen organized into a caste system in the Kandyan period acquired certain flexibilities. These caste group were attached to state department called Kottal Badda (The Department of Artificers) who were dawn from Nawandanna caste (families of craftsmen). They inter – married with the South Indian craftsmen who had settled in the Kandyan Kingdom. They were divided into two groups known s Achari (the metal workers) and Waduwo (wood/stone workers). Still later, they were sub-divided into several castes such s Achari (black smith), Badallu (gold and silver smith) Waduwo (Carpenters), Galwaduwo (Stone cutters), Hitaru (Painters), and Lokurovo (brass founder), etc. The gold and silver smiths, the painters, ivory carves and brass workers were known as Gamladdo or Galladdo and were regarded s the highest rank. As the name suggests they ere people who enjoyed royal lands granted to them.

In return these craftsmen supplied various items such as Chunm boxes, Arecanut cutters, Bill-hooks, and Coconut scrapers, to the Rajakeeya Gabadawa (the Royal Stores).

There is ample evidence available as to show these artists and the craftsmen were looked after by these organizations. This information is found in Sannas (copper plate grants) given by the king himself and on ola leave (tudapat, sittu and panivida panata) given by the district chiefs. The Medawala copper plate grant given by King Kirti Sri Rajasinha of Kandy (1755 A.D.) records the benefit received by the Buddhist Vihara at Madawela. This pious king, who heard of the negligence of the Viharaya, had rebuilt an image house decorated with murals, statues, and exquisitely rich wood carvings. The copper plate (Ez.Vol.V.1965:466-486) explains how this was carried out and also the manner in which the artists and craftsmen were rewarded.
“When after the completion of the wood work of the two storeyed seven cubit image house, artist were summoned for the work of planting and the work on the image commenced, the King heard of the ceremony and made a grant of a thousand coins from the Royal Coffers, and from the royal Offices and Commandants, that the services should be rendered without delay and gave without any shortcoming all gifts such as rice and beetle to the master craftsmen.”

“When it came to the ceremony of the painting of the eyes, this was conducted, having given to the Master Craftsmen without shortfall two yalas and ten amunas of raw rice which was contributed for the –ceremony of Atamangala and the placing of pots of luck connected with the shrine, twenty three cows for the Gowasa (the cattle enclosure set apart for the use of shrine), one hundred and one pieces of cloth, one thousand one hundred and fifty fannamas, the neck ornament of Pandiran gold from Pandyan?) and Uttaran (pure gold) for adoring the five fold bodily members and all the rest. So was complete the eye ceremony that the master craftsmen may be pleased and so give thanks”.

It is also believed that at the time that the Gangarama Viharaya in Kandy was completed, Kirtisiri had an entire costume presented to the master artist and also tied a gold frontlet (Nalalpata) to the forehead of the artist. He is also known to have given Gannoruwe Davunda Abharana Achariya, a skillful goldsmith working in the King’s Place, land, money and an elephant Furthermore, when Marukona Ratna Abharana Wedakaraya appeared at the place gate before King Rajasingha the Second he was ordered to make jewellery prepared for Royal Dress. Having done so, he stated that he required Mottuwela Nilapanguwa Badavidilla in Pallesiyapatttuwa of Asiri Korale in the Matale District for his maintenance. In the year 1665 the King granted the request to this craftsmen.

According to popular legend, when Kirtisri Rajasingha was on his way to Hanguranketa, he spent a night in the house of a goldsmith, Ratnavalli Navaratna Abharana of Neelawela. If this was true, then it shows that the King never treated the artists as low. We have ample examples of ancient Sinhalese Kings who were themselves proficient in various arts such as literature, ivory carving, etc.


The Kandyan arts and crafts are not completely free from foreign influence. It is evident from historical sources that during the latter part of the Kandyan Kingdom of the 18th century, various arts and craftsmen were invited to the Kingdom from South India by the last generations of Kings in Kandy who were Nayakkars of South Indian origin.
“The Navandanna or artificers at any one time, speaking of the 18th and immediately preceding centuary at least consisted partly of indigenous craftsmen and partly of newly settled Tamil artificers, coming from South India to work for the King, who showed them favour and made the grants of land. Hence, it is that not only do we find the close correspondence in detail and technique between South Indian (Tamil) and Sinhalese work, but also that the Artificer families have often Hindu names (such as Rajesvera, Devasurendra) they preserve traces of Siva workship and of other Hindu ceremonies (Netra Mangallaya) etc. The technical works are obviously a part of the Indian Silpasastra, some of the technical terms are corruptions of Tamil words, they make use of the Hindu Mntrams. They are occasionally referred to as Kammalar, and so forth.
(Ananda Coomarasamy, Medieval Sinhalese art.)
As far as the tradition of dancing in the Kandyan hills is concerned, it is clear that it has derived inspiration from the village ritual known as Kohomba Kankariya. According, to the popular beliefs prevalent among these traditional dancers,’ the vannamas of the present day tradition of Kandyan dance were introduced by the famous Silpadipati Ganitalankara of Kerala. Sinhalese arts and crafts flourished throughout a magnificent period of several centuries and absorbed this particular foreign influence. When the country was ruled by these South Indian Nayakkara rulers, local artists lives and worked together harmoniously with South Indian artists and crafts and craftsmen which resulted in new tradition of arts and crafts which is Kandyan.

The social organization of the Kandyan Kingdom, then consisted of various social groups practicing various trades under a Badda (in the strict sense it means a caste). Thus a new caste system emerged solely’ on The basis of occupation, which is only partially true of the Indian system. This generation of artists, who worked within this system of occupational divisions, continued to live in Kandy and its suburbs even after the down fall of the Kandyan Kingdom in 1815. The following list will show the continuation of these divisions of labour and the traditional villages to which various craftsmen are attached, even to this day:

Craft Village
Brass work and casting Madawla, Kirivavula,Embekke
Silver and brass Danture,Ullandupitiya,Arattana
Nilawela,Pilawala,Medawela
Gold and Silver Embekke and Nilawela
Lacquor and wood work Gunnepana,Embekke and Hapuvida
Cloth Talagune
Mat weaving Henawela
Drum making Kuragala, Kuragandeniya
Crystal work Kirivavula
Dancing and drumming Tittapajjala,Malagammana,Ihalawela,Molagoda,
Hewaheta,Yakawela,Kondadeniya,Nittawela,
Amunugama
Decorative art Kulugammana
Painting Nilagama
Ivory Kundasale, Mawanella.

Though the castebased social organizations remained intact, the artists and the craftsmen, as well as their arts and crafts suffered immensely after the downfall of the Kandyan Kingdom as no support and patronage was provided. In 1882, for the first time, the artist and the craftsmen in the Kandyan Provinces were brought together by the British Government of Kandy represented by Sir Frederick Dikson, who organized the Kandyan Arts Association, which has continued to this date.

With a magnificent new building complex constructed for the century this Association located in Kandy, near the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, continues to serve the artists and the customers alike maintaining its great traditions. The National Crafts council of Sri Lanka, the Department of Small Industries and government organizations such as Laksala have joined hands in looking after the arts and crafts of the old Kandyan Kingdom." UNQUOTE

Last edited by Ibrahiim al Balooshi; 6th October 2012 at 02:51 PM.
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