Appallagoda Ambalama
The Appallagoda Ambalama is a traditional resting place situated in a rural
environment in the village of Appallagoda, 6 kilometers from the city of
Kandy in Sri Lanka. Built in 1922, it is an example of traditional, indigenous
architecture and is known to be the largest stone built "Ambalama" in
the Kandy region.
The Appallagoda Ambalama has a floor area of approximately 80 square meters
and it measures 5.6 meters from floor to pinnacle. The roof is supported
by two sets of stone columns, 12 externally and 4 internally. Inside, around
the Ambalama, there are seats made out of stone. Caste differences play a
vital role in the management of society, especially in an area such as Kandy,
and this is depicted by the level change seen in the seating area.
At the top of the roof there is a brass pinnacle which symbolises the architectural
pattern of that period. A prominent feature of this Ambalama is the stone "pinthäliya",
a traditional container in which drinking water is stored, that is situated
in front of the Ambalama. Another prominent feature are the two broken stone
columns in the north-eastern side of the Ambalama. The villagers in the area
say that this was done deliberately when the Ambalama was built in order
to ward off inauspicious omens.
Appallagoda Ambalama was built in 1922 when Sri Lanka was still under British
rule. The villagers say that the structure was built in order to house travelling
trade parties, which were apparently abundant in this era. Although there
are no written documentation about this Ambalama (maybe because it is a fairly
recent addition to the list of Ambalamas in Sri Lanka) the village folk say
that the Ambalama was built under the orders of the "Arrachchi" (head
of the village), with the help of the villagers themselves. An folktale revolves
around the four names engraved in the four internal stone columns. It is
said that these four names belonged to some "thugs" who were from
the southern part of the island, who had come to Kandy with commercial interests
and settled down there. They had used their powers and engraved their names
in the Ambalama. Thus, those names of times by gone still remain unhampered
by the winds of change.
source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appallagoda_ambalama
Created : October 31, 2009
Updated :
November 2, 2009
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