Sigiriya Museum: a visual narration of a tangible heritage of Sri Lanka
ABSTRACT
The entrance to the Sigiriya Museum is through a brick tunnel that is designed in the same way as the archway of Water Garden of the Sigiriya Royal City Complex. Inside this newly built museum exhibits human skeletons, clay objects, tools, jewellery, sculptures and carvings, which were found from archaeological excavations at Sigiriya and its surrounding area. Some are iron and bronze objects that portray the prehistoric and historic cultural evolution in Sri Lanka. The galleries at the Museum are filled with drawings and photographs but these do not provide much technical information. These commodities and materials have cultural, technological and archaeological value, and provide an indication about cultural evolution in the region from Prehistoric times to the reign of King Kasyapa which extends from 10,000 yr B.P to 1,520 yr B.P.
Introduction
The Sigiriya Museum is known to be the most attractive museum in South Asia, managed by the Central Cultural Fund of Sri Lanka. As a UNESCO world heritage site, archaeological excavations are continuing since last three decades at Sigiriya and its surroundings. Based on those excavations a large numbers of structures, commodities and materials of cultural, technological and archaeological values have been explored at the Sigiriya Museum, which is established on August, 2009. The entrance to the Sigiriya Museum is through a brick tunnel that is designed in the same way as the archway of Water Garden of the Sigiriya Royal City Complex (Photo 1). The museum design is based on creative concepts obtains from Sigiriya royal city complex. In keeping the archaeological and environmental imperatives the museum can be seen as a building merged with the forest (Bandaranayake 2011:11). The design of the museum was inspired by the fashionable design of Sigiriya itself. It followed the concept of Green Building with the mastery use of water and the use of trees so that it stimulates a true experience (Photo 2). By adopting the eco-focused design concept, the Sigiriya museum has not only become a contemporary “Green Building” in vogue but also successfully conserve the archaeological material found from Sigiriya site and its surroundings (Ellepola 2009: 2). Also the museum is active with temporary exhibitions and various kind of indigenous activities.
Among the museum exhibits human skeletons, clay objects, tools, jewellery, iron and bronze objects, sculptures and carvings are very valuable things. The most significant artifacts are „an iron melting kiln‟ and „a purple colour embedded gold earring‟. The galleries at the Museum are filled with drawings and photographs but these do not provide much technical information.
Among the museum exhibits human skeletons, clay objects, tools, jewellery, iron and bronze objects, sculptures and carvings are very valuable things. The most significant artifacts are „an iron melting kiln‟ and „a purple colour embedded gold earring‟. The galleries at the Museum are filled with drawings and photographs but these do not provide much technical information. The artifacts enlighten us on the way of humans settlements distributed and evolved in and around Sigiriya; how human beings changed from itinerant food gatherers and hunters to sedentary farmers while their settlements changed from temporary dwellings to permanent agrarian villages. Likewise, the exhibits at the Museum educate us about the Buddhist monastic era from the Pre-Kasyapa period to the „Golden Age‟ of Sigiriya which emerged during the reign of King Kasyapa. Such artifacts, commodities and materials have cultural, technological and archaeological value, and depict an indication about cultural evolution in the region from Prehistoric times to the reign of King Kasyapa which extends from 10,000 yr B.P to 1,520 yr B.P. Although, a number of disciplines come alive in the newly built Sigiriya Museum, the number of visitors is relatively low when compared to the number of arrivals to the Sigiriya Rock Site. Accordingly, this paper reveals the courses and consequences responsible for the reduction of arrivals to the museum. Also this paper attempts to provide recommendations to attract more visitors to the Sigiriya Museum for visual narration of our tangible heritage.
Arrangement of the museum
With entering the Sigiriya Museum, one has to go through a brick tunnel that was designed similarly to the archway of the Sigiriya Fortress. The floors are built so that visitors can feel the Sigiriya climb through the ascending terraces and the wide stairways. The exhibits of the museum contain two galleries as the lower floor and the upper floor. First floor gallery has twelve thematic and chronological divisions. The entrance to the first gallery is through a brick tunnel (Photo 1) that is designed in the same way as the archway of the Sigiriya Fortress. The first division of the first gallery exhibit the objects of Geology ofSigiriya, pre and protohistory and the technology of iron production. Prehistoric human skeleton (Photo 3) found from the Pothana rock shelter, which is exhibited at the museum depict C14 dating as 5500 yr B.P (Adikari 1994: 67). Likewise, the especial burial objects from Ibbankatuwa megalithic burial site (Photo 4) and the iron furnace from Alakolawewa iron production site are some of the valuable exhibits at the museum.
The second division of the museum exhibits the objects related to the early and late Buddhist monasteries of Sigiriya and suburb. The special objects in the gallery are two dolomitic marble plaques found from the stupa at Pidurangala. One of these is rare, and has carvings on both sides. Third division exhibit the objects related to the theme of the “Golden Age” of Sigiriya. There are exhibits of architectural ornamentations, tiles, all types of bricks, terra cotta tubing, iron nails, hinges, struts etc. Especially, visitor can see the model of Sigiriya rock and garden in a bird eye view. Additionally there is a conjecture 3D film depicting the ancient Sigiriya palace in its glory. Fourth division exhibits Sigiri graffiti, the paintings of boulder garden and terra cotta sculptures. Here audio strategy is used to listen to the Sigiriya graffiti. Similarly, the Fifth division is used to exhibit the artifacts related to courtly and monastic life and foreign trade. That collection contains jewelries, coins, weapons and potteries. Sassanian vessels (Photo 5), which reveal the international affairs is the attractive item at the Sigiriya museum. Withal, the sixth division includes the objects of the “hidden centuries”, and there one can see folk terra cotta objects found from Ilukwewa, Iberian door lock (Photo 6) and a headdress of a regional chieftain. Furthermore, musicological techniques are using at the Sigiriya museum especially electronic instruments for visual narration of our heritages. The upper (second) gallery is a replica of the “fresco pocket”. The targeted visitors of this gallery are the disable visitors who cannot reach to the Sigiriya rock fresco pocket. Thus, a number of disciplines come alive in the newly built Sigiriya Museum. However, the number of visitors to the museum is relatively low when compared to the number of arrivals to the Sigiriya Site. The number of local visitors to the Sigiriya Site was 392,552; 460,658;311,628 and 389,724 from 2010 to 2013 respectively. Similarly, foreign visitors at the Museum are also low, ranging between 166,187; 204,388; 234,906 and 273,344 during the same period (Figure 1). When compared the arrivals to the Sigiriya site with the local and foreign arrivals to the Museum fluctuated from year to year. Between 2010 and 2013 all the locals who visited to the Sigiriya museum only 9.3%, 19.0%, 20.0% and 20.7% respectively. Among the foreigners, the proportion who visited the Museum during the same period was 16.11%, 9.23%, 26.54 and 29.51% respectively (Figure 2). These figures show that the lack of local and foreign visitors for the museum. Majority of the tourists gave their priority and attention to the Sigiriya Rock site.
The museum premises have established alongside from the main pathway. This is one of the main reasons that reduce the number of visitors at museum. The majority of the museum visitors are school children, but school children or teachers have no idea about the museum and exhibits due to lack of historical, cultural and geographical knowledge and values. Many foreign tourists are going to another destination after visiting the Sigiriya Rock site. This also happens due to lack of knowledge on museums, their exhibit materials and print makers for guides who bring foreigners from different countries. However, a large number of local visitors arrive to the rock site and the museum during the Wesak, Poson and Esala Buddhist Festival periods, while most of the foreign arrivals occur between September to February each year.
Conclusions
National museums provide with exhibitions of archaeology, nature, art, and industrial and social history, mainly for local and foreign visitors of any country. As a World Heritage site Sigiriya Rock and its surroundings supply an archaeological wonder of Sri Lankan City Planning, Arts, Gardenscaping, Engineering, Hydraulic Technology and Defense of the 5th Century AD. Following such activities, the Sigiriya museum is an important monument, which exhibits the archaeological heritage and traditional folk heritage.
There are many activities and promotional programmes undertaken to increase the arrivals of tourist at the Sigiriya museum. Thus various temporary exhibitions based on heritage of folk culture, cultural shows, visitor activities are going on through the permanent museum exhibition. As a result of those kinds of activities, museum is receiving positive visitor comments, yet it is unable to increase the head count of visitors attending the museum.. Therefore, to overcome this issue, well developed awareness programmes, guide papers, instructions for guides and booklets for school children, teachers as well as for locals and foreigners are necessary.
The entrance to the Sigiriya Museum is through a brick tunnel that is designed in the same way as the
archway of Water Garden of the Sigiriya Royal City Complex. Inside this newly built museum exhibits
human skeletons, clay objects, tools, jewellery, sculptures and carvings, which were found from
archaeological excavations at Sigiriya and its surrounding area. Some are iron and bronze objects
that portray the prehistoric and historic cultural evolution in Sri Lanka. The galleries at the Museum
are filled with drawings and photographs but these do not provide much technical information. These
commodities and materials have cultural, technological and archaeological value, and provide an
indication about cultural evolution in the region from Prehistoric times to the reign of King Kasyapa
which extends from 10,000 yr B.P to 1,520 yr B.P.
The entrance to the Sigiriya Museum is through a brick tunnel that is designed in the same way as the
archway of Water Garden of the Sigiriya Royal City Complex. Inside this newly built museum exhibits
human skeletons, clay objects, tools, jewellery, sculptures and carvings, which were found from
archaeological excavations at Sigiriya and its surrounding area. Some are iron and bronze objects
that portray the prehistoric and historic cultural evolution in Sri Lanka. The galleries at the Museum
are filled with drawings and photographs but these do not provide much technical information. These
commodities and materials have cultural, technological and archaeological value, and provide an
indication about cultural evolution in the region from Prehistoric times to the reign of King Kasyapa
which extends from 10,000 yr B.P to 1,520 yr B.P.
