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JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [VoL. XXII. 
first broke ground at Poloimaruwa) has witnessed the excavation 
of all the chief structures of " Pulastipura," from the mistermed 
" Demala Maha Seya" on the north as far south as the " Potgul 
Vehera " Monastery, a stretch of four miles. 
1. — Clearing. 
The parking of the city was continued by Moor axemen. With 
a larger gang of Sinhalese at work, the whole of the confines within 
the walls of the Citadel and City were freed of underwood, except 
here and there at a few picturesque silvan clumps within which 
no ruins seem to exist above ground. 
Outside the City, northward, all the ruins surrounding the two 
large Dagabas, the " Gal-Vihare," and the " Una -gala Vehera " 
hillock, were also re-cleared. 
To the west, across T6pavewa tank, the heavy jimgle gripping 
a group of ruins (" Sitala Maligawa," &c.), which stand quite 
isolated from the main ruins situated to north and east of the 
bund, was cut down and burnt. 
2. — Excavations. 
" Demala-Mahd-Seya.'" 
This brick-built Buddhist temple is of the type of the so-called 
" Jetawanarama " and " Thuparama " Vihares, In size it 
considerably exceeds the latter. 
Exteriorly, the brick and stucco ornamentation of its moulded 
basement and wall face, though carried out on very similar lines, 
departs from the simplicity of '* Thuparama," and is more lavish 
even than that of " Jetawanarama." This plethora of surface 
mouldings and ornament palls on the eye from overcrowding of 
details and want of proportion. 
The south and east walls stand in fair preservation, but the 
back (west) wall and much of the north have fallen, whilst the 
vaulted roof of vestibule and shrine has wholly collapsed. 
In 1885-86 the vestibule was unearthed, under the direction of 
Mr. S. M. Burrows, and disclosed remains of interesting frescoes 
(Buddhist legend=J, &c.) on its inner walls. 
Unfortunately no steps were taken to protect these paintings, 
and in the fifteen years' interval before the Archaeological Survey 
commenced work at Polonnaruwa, they had faded beyond 
recognition. 
The first task of the past season's excavation was the removal of 
the debris which literally choked the entresol , leading on from the 
vestibule, as well as the shrine itself, up to the top of the walls, 
which are 25 feet high in places. 
The difficulty of dealing with this immense mass of caked brick 
and mortar talus, which filled the passage and shrine, rendered the 
work both slow and dangerous, in view of the crumbling state of 
the later built inner walls.* Ultimately the whole space was 
* A Moor cooly was buried to the neck by the fall of part of a wall. 
