GUIDE TO THE COLOMBO MUSEUM. 179 



Special attention is directed to the stool beautifully carved with 

 the hansa-puttuwa — the double-headed goose pattern. The hansa 

 is the well known sacred goose of Hinduism. The name stands 

 also for beautiful gait ; it is regarded as beautiful and auspicious. 

 In Sinhalese as well as in Hindu decorative art the hansa-puttuun is 

 seen everywhere. 



In the right half of this case is seen a variety of wooden boxes. 

 Many of the boxes are very finely carved, and others are handsomely 

 bound m silver. Perhaps the two most noteworthy specimens are 

 at the bottom of the case. One is a Kandyan pot-pettiya (book box) 

 with copper fittings, and the other is a rattaran-pettiya (a box for 

 storing valuables) with a finely carved makara torana. (See 

 Plate XXXI.) 



Case 36. 



Life-size models of a Low -country Chief or Mudaliyar, and of a 

 Sinhalese bride of the eighteenth century. 



A collection of Dutch chatelaines and other Dutch silverware, as 

 well as some Kandyan silver waist chains and a series of Tamil 

 anklets, toe-rings, and other ornaments for decorating the feet. 



Case 38. 



Life-size models of a Kandyan Chief or Ratemahatmaya, and a 

 Buddhist Priest with begging-bowl. 



Jewellery (Cases 39, 40, and 41). 



Case 39 and half of Case 40 are devoted to Sinhalese jewellery. 

 The other half of Case 40 displays samples of jewellery of the Jaffna 

 Tamils. Case 41 contains the handsome jewellery of the Chetties. 



With the Indian races, jewellery forms not only an important but 

 even a necessary portion of the costume of the female, and very 

 often of the male as weU. A glance at the copies of the Sigiriya 

 frescoes on either side of the main staircase reveals the fact that in 

 the fifth century of the Christian era the upper portion of the 

 female was as a rule only covered with jewels, and this continued 

 to be very largely the practice in India as well as in Ceylon till the 

 arrival of the Portuguese. These frescoes prove that not only were 

 the jewels massive and numerous, but that they were at the same 

 time beautiful in design, and artistic in conception. The large 

 stones with which the jewels are mounted are specially noticeable. 



Till the arrival of Europeans the jewellery of Ceylon carmot be 

 differentiated from that of India ; to-day, however, the European 

 influence is almost exclusively shown in the articles which are 

 exposed for sale in the Colombo shops . The collection of the Museum 

 displays a varied assortment, some of the exhibits dating from 

 pre-Christian times. (See Plate XXXII.) 



Case 39. 



The gold bangles which have been unearthed at Anuradhapura 

 are among the earhest. These are made in the Indian fashion, of 

 very pure gold beaten thin, and the interior space filled with a 

 preparation of wax, just as is done to-day. The more modem 

 bracelets include some artistic specimens set Avith ivory and crystal, 



