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Various
types of beads found at several archaeological sites in Sri Lanka |
This article is reproduced with kind
permission from the National Gem and Jewellery Authority Sri Lanka.
Gems
have been defined as “objects of great beauty or worth” and as “precious
stones”, specially, when those are cut and polished for ornamental use.
Over the centuries, however, the term ‘gemstone’ had meant a naturally
occurring Mineral desirable for its beauty, valuable in its rarity and
sufficiently durable to give lasting pleasure.
From the
time immemorial, Sri Lanka had an immense reputation for many varieties of
gems. Legend has it that King Solomon wooed Queen of Sheba offering
precious stones of Sri Lanka. Many years later, Prince Charles mesmerized
Lady Diana with an engagement ring adorned with a priceless blue sapphire
from Sri Lanka.
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Drill
hole through a bead showing slight disorientation in the middle. |
The Great Chronicle of the
Island Nation, which covers its history for over 2000 years, refers to the
singular fame of the island for its gems. The archaeology department
excavated several burial grounds of Sri Lanka some of which were
tentatively dated to 1000 BC (Ibbankatuwa) and some were dated even
earlier than that. In most of these sites many verities of gems (polished
as it is) and number of varieties of gem beads were unearthed; these are
believed to be the jewellery worn at the time. Since this jewellery was
found among the corpses, one could suggest that they are as old as the
corpses (Seneviratna, 1984).
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Corundum
bead (Exhibit in the National Museum of Sri Lanka, No. 56-2-32). |
Many verities of gem beads
were often discovered in Sri Lankan archaeological sites. The excavation
of Citadel of Anuradhpura and of areas where Mukkaru people lived /
worked, unearthed many varieties of gem beads and other kinds of beads
(Fig.1). Many archaeologists are under the impression that these beads
were not produced in Sri Lanka, but were exported from countries like
India (Gujarat). The study unravel that the material for making these
beads and the technology were freely available throughout the country
during that time.
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Spinel
showing several drill holes occurred as a result of testing the gauges
of drill bits |
Almost all the beads exhibited how they were
drilled. Evidence shows that they were drilled from either end to join in
the middle resulting in a slight disorientation at the joint (Fig 2).
Uncertainty arises as to how they managed to drill tiny holes through
these very hard substances. Some are of the opinion that emery powder and
iron drill bits were used to drill these stones. If it is so, how were the
hard materials like sapphires were drilled (Fig. 3)? And even for other
stones the above method could have taken a very long time to drill a
single bead. Large number of beads found in the areas suggests that
ancient artisan had been much quicker in drilling these beads. Hypothesis
is weather they could have used diamond drill bits exported from India for
the purpose of drilling. According to Henry Parker the bow driven drill
was familiar to locals from second century BC onwards (Parker, 1981). So
the suggestion is that they had used this type of drill along with diamond
drill bits to drill large quantities of beads at ease as well as to cope
up with harder stones like sapphire. Stones of hard materials such as
sapphire and spinel exhibiting drill holes of equivalent or different
sizes, which had been used to test the gauges of drill bits had been found
in the area (Fig.4).
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Several
cameos and intaglios made of carnelian and rock crystal |
The most fanciful material
found in these places is neither the beads nor the gems, polished as it
is, but the most intricate rock carvings of very small sizes generally
called cameos and intaglios. These carvings were made out of materials
such as carnelian, rock crystal and colored glasses (Fig.5). Very rarely
found in other materials, such as chrysoberyl (Fig 6). The carvings
depicted in the cameos and intaglios are very beautiful and illustrate
most intricate details of natural figures. Even with the modern tools it
is difficult to carve such intricate figures on small gem pieces such as
those.
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Chrysoberyl
carving showing the figure of an elephant |
It is a fair assumption
that they have used diamond tools to carve these things (Fig. 5). For
polishing they must have used the finely ground corundum powder. For
stones with less hardness they may have used burned rice husks, which is
still mainly used in Down South to polish moonstones. According to the
evidence found, these people had used number of wooden laps for polishing
various types of stones. Bamboo was also very popular in ancient times and
it needed no abrasive powder as the abrasive material present naturally on
the surface was enough to give a fine polish for certain varieties of
stones.
The
conclusion is that these beads and other carvings were manufactured in Sri
Lanka using our own material and our own technology. According to the
experts the materials could be dated to periods within the first to
twelfth century AD. Therefore the suggestion is that the Mukkaru people
(nationality of craftsmen) lived and worked in many areas in the country
in large numbers. The artifacts are of very good craftsmanship, although
they were made by the most primitive methods and instruments. The most
intricate carvings in the cameos and drill holes in the sapphires are not
second to today’s standards. They are remarkable in esthetic and
technological aspects.
Related
Sri Lanka-An introduction
Madagascar and Sri Lanka gemstones-Common geological
origin
Geography of Sri Lanka-Climate-relief and distribution of the population
Back to Reference Database
References
1. Seneviratne, S., 1984. The archaeology of the Megalithic-black and red
ware complex in Sri Lanka. Journal of the Archaeological Survey Dept.
of Sri Lanka, No.5, pp. 237-307.
2. Parker, H, 1981. Ancient Ceylon. J. Jetley for Asian Educational
Services, New Delhi (ISBN 8120602080), pp. 558-559
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