Category Archives: the imaginary and the real

Premila Thurairatnam, whose article in The CEYLANKAN May 2024 Issue is entitled ”Ceylon Ivory”

In Ceylon, ivory was used in carving as early as the 2^nd century CE or earlier¹. Descriptions of Lanka in the epic Ramayana refer to ivory-embellished chariots and ivory panels. By the 15^th century, ivory carving had become important enough to result in placing ivory workers fairly high on the social scale, just below the farmers and ivory was the second largest export next to cinnamon. The carving was performed with a high degree of skill using simple tools like saws, chisels and rasps to produce ivory knife handles, combs, bangles, boxes, book covers, compasses and architectural elements, such as ornamentation around door frames. Use of ivory in religious images was unique to Ceylon since being an animal substance, other cultures regarded it as inappropriate or simply too difficult to obtain¹. Even today, it is common practice to place mounted elephant tusks on each side of temple doorways and ivory confiscated from poachers or from elephants that die is donated to temples.

Ceylon Ivory Fig 1. Fan. Kotte 1540-55. Ivory, rubies and gold on wool, 57cm high ….. Staatliches Museum für Völkerkunde, Munich; exh. Museum Rietberg, Zürich⁶.

Casket 1 – Kunsthistorishces Museum, Vienna

Fig 2 (Casket 1). Kotte before 1542. 14.9 x 25 x 16cm. Handle and feet contemporary Indo-Portuguese, the lock-plate probably South German, mid-16th century silver mounts. Kunsthistorishces Museum, Vienna⁷.

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