NO. 46. — 1895.] ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY, SIGIRIYA. 47 



return to Anuradhapura many of the coolies have been 

 incapacitated for work from a crop of ulcerated sores, 

 undoubtedly traceable to the bad tank water at Sigiriya. 



16. The whole force — a strange and remarkably unplea- 

 sant experience — was for quite a fortnight harassed by the 

 bambaru, or rock-bees,* whose hives line the cliff. These 

 aggressive little pests (with a sting considered almost as 

 severe as that of the debord, or hornet) f lay in wait for 

 the approach of the coolies, and more than once, suo more, 

 literally chased them down to their lines, inflicting stings 

 that half blinded some of the men and laid them up for days 

 together.^ Hardly one escaped, and work on the summit 

 had to be temporarily suspended. After several ineffectual 

 attempts to destroy the hives by riddling them with shot 

 and ball, we at last succeeded by slow-burning fire balls 

 (Sinhalese, vedi dodan) in burning them out from their main 

 hive a hundred feet or more up the west cliff. The rest of 

 the bees then gave comparatively little annoyance. 



17. Briefly, the work done at Sigiriya by the Archaeo- 

 logical Survey during the season of 1895 comprised : — 



(1) Clearing of trees and undergrowth {a) on the 



summit, half done in 1894 ; (b) below the Rock, 

 within the outer bemma, or rampart, of the 

 ancient nuwara (city). 



(2) Excavations (a) on the summit ; (b) below. 



(3) Other work. 



(4) Detailed measuring up and drawing the walls, 



steps, &c, laid bare by axe and spade. 



18. Full plans, &c, are reserved for my Annual Report. 

 The following, forwarded with this preliminary report, will 

 give a good general idea of the nature and amount of work 

 carried out : — 



* Vespa cineta. or affinis. t Eumenes petiolata. 



% Tennent (Ceylon, I. 258) commits himself as follows :— " I have never 

 heard of an instance of persons being attacked by the bees of Ceylon, and 

 hence the natives assert, that those most productive of honey are destitute 

 of stings." 



