He says also:

"As a silhouette the elderly guru is seen not to hold himself fully erect, and to have developed the common tendency to obesity due to creeping old age. A true touch of naturalism is further quaintly brought out by the paunch being made to protrude beyond the tightly tied loin-cloth and belt."

The curious fez-like cap rises above the rest of the rock, being cut out of a little boss or hummock which has been thus utilised. The long drooping moustache, full lips, and rather heavy dignified expression give the figure great character. It is obviously a portrait in stone and not merely a conventional type. It is human all through.

The statue is not mentioned by either Major Forbes or Sir E. Tennent.

On its left is a dagaba, from the summit of which a wide view of the rolling miles of jungle can be seen, and if a visit be made at sunset when the red light illumines the trees, and the weird cries of the myriad creatures, who have their being therein, begin to make themselves heard, it is a most impressive experience.

Straight ahead of the statue, at a distance of about 200 yards, is the Potgul Vehera, placed directly in the line of vision. Through the centuries the guru has stared fixedly at the library, from which possibly he borrowed the sacred book he is represented as holding.

The most interesting feature of this building is its circular room, reaching 20 feet 6 inches at its widest, and showing traces of decorative paint.

It was not until 1904 that the jungle was cut down and these buildings were uncovered, though their existence had been known some time before. The wall of the circular building is so extraordinarily thick, nearly 15 feet at the ground, that it obviously must have been designed to support some great weight such as a dome. The building was completely gutted and ransacked in search of treasures in the form of sacred books some time in the eighties. There was a tradition that it contained valuable writings, and this probably led to its name, which means "Library Dagaba." Its real name is unknown.

"If we may hope to identify the so-called 'Potgul-Vehera' from the Mahawansa record, it may not improbably have been that ' delightful circular house,' which, as the chronicle relates, Parakrama Bahu the Great (A.D. 1164-1197) had constructed 'wherein he might listen to the Jatakas of the Great Sage, read by the learned priest who dwelt there.""

From an inscribed door-jamb of the mandapaya the following inscription has been recovered and translated:

"That most masterful and sapient King of Lanka [Parakrama Bahu] purified the law of the Omniscient [Buddha]. It was he who first caused the entire viharé to be built. The Queen of that wise King Parakrama Bahu, having been installed in the kingdom, caused the viharé to be wholly rebuilt. This Mandapaya was caused to be erected by that noble queen, Chandravati by name, who had become secondly Chief Queen to the King." (1906 Report.)

Mr. Bell identifies this queen with " Rupavati," fairest of beings, who, like the Moon (Chandralekha), rose . . . and drew upon her the eyes of the world." Around the "Vehera" are four small dagabas and around the platform the ruins of monks' cells or piriven, symmetrically arranged. Mr. Bell discovers marked points of difference in the architecture of this monastery from others at Polunnaruwa. He points out points of similarity between it and Mi-Baume in Siamese Kambodia as described by Monsieur Tissandier, and adds that lithic records point to the " Kambodian quarter" of the old city probably lying to the south. This is the farthest building south yet discovered.

We have now traversed Polunnaruwa from end to end, from Demala-maha-seya to the Potgul vehera, and it is probably safe to say that nowhere within a similar small area are to be found so many buildings showing such striking originality in their architectural treatment. From the graceful Floral Altar to the ruined bathing-house on the promontory, each has its story to tell, and tells it in a way which may prove interesting to others than those who are fortunate enough to visit these royal cities so long lost in the jungle.

CHAPTER XIX

YAPAHUWA: A FOURTEENTH-CENTURY FORTRESS

THOUGH Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa are by far the grandest of the ancient Cingalese cities, the one having been the capital for about twelve centuries and the other for half a dozen, there are yet many other ruins scattered over the Central Provinces which would prove a fascinating study to those who have time to visit them. Chief of these is Yapahuwa, which was the capital for a short time in the thirteenth century. It is most easily reached from Anuradhapura, for the nearest station is Maho, on the line to and from Polgahawela Junction. From the train, in passing, can be noted a great rock, not unlike Sigiriya, standing up abruptly to the east, about three miles away. There is no rest-house at the station, and if a conveyance is needed, a bullock-cart must be ordered in advance. By road it is forty-four miles from Anuradhapura: forty-one to Maho, and three beyond. The first reference to this fortress retreat in the Mahawansa is in the thirteenth century, when a city was built" on the top of Subhapabbata' [Yapahu-Kanda], a mountain difficult of access to the enemy."

1 "The names Subha-pabbata, Subha-chala, Subha-giri, Yahapav (by Metathesis Yapav), Yapahuwa, all mean the excellent mountain.'"

This was rendered necessary by the repeated inroads of the Southern Indians, mainly Pandyans, and the place became a stronghold to which the Cingalese could retreat in times of stress.

"Afterwards he [Wijaya Bahu IV] enclosed that city also with a high wall and a moat, and built there and finished a palace of exceeding great beauty, and made provision for the support of the great priesthood that dwelt in that city."

In the reign of Wijaya's successor, Bhuwaneka Bahu (A.D. 1277), after some uncertainty, Yapahuwa definitely became the capital of the kingdom. The king reigned here for eleven years. After his death misfortunes fell thick and fast on the weaker race: there was a disastrous famine, and further fierce invasions of the Pandyans from India, when the Cingalese were more than ever unable to cope with them. The stronghold itself was stormed and taken, and the Tooth-relic carried off to India, whence it was recovered later by Parakrama Bahu III (A.D. 1288).

Yapahuwa never regained its position after this smashing blow, so its duration of importance was less than twenty years. But it was finally ruined, so far as architectural buildings go, by a visit from the Portuguese in the sixteenth century.

In 1886 it was repaired to some extent by Mr. A. E. Williams, Assistant Engineer in the Public Works Department.

The rock, which resembles Sigiriya in a general way, but differs from it in important particulars, is partly enclosed by a double ramp or bund