Page 12 - Citadel Book P I

SECTION 1

EXCAVATIONS IN THE ANURADHAPURA CITADEL: SONDAGES

The Archaeological Landscape, 1968
Sri Lanka has over 100,000 archaeological sites of the historical period, as estimated from the
spot surveys conducted by the Archaeological Department in the late 1990s. The more
visually prominent amongst these, which constitute less than ten per cent of the total number of
sites, have been documented and investigated since the 1860s (Wijesekera 1990). However,
these investigations were primarily focused on (a) exposure of monuments as a prelude to
conservation and display, with little attention paid to excavation procedures (even in the mid-
th
1960s); (b) verification of information in historical sources such as the Dipavamsa (4
th
century) and the Mahavamsa (6 century); (c) the study of epigraphs, of which Sri Lanka is
endowed with over 4500, as an adjunct to historical research; and (d) the study of art and
architecture from the perspective of the art historian and the architect.

By 1968, it was apparent that major lacuna existed in what was known about the
chronology and sequence of the material culture of the protohistoric Iron Age (syn. Early Iron
Age) and Early Historic periods. To resolve this issue, it was decided to stratigraphically
excavate a multi-phased site. Strategically this was the only option available, since almost all
of the sites that had been investigated thus far had been of the Upper Early Historic period or
later, mostly Middle Historic.

A desk-top survey indicated that Anuradhapura would be the most suitable site to meet
the research requirement stated above. According to historical accounts (Paranavitana
1959:109ff), it was the capital of the island for over 1300 years, commencing ca. 400 BC. The
city centre, popularly referred to as the Citadel since it has a rampart around it, was identified
on the basis of historical references by Bell (1904:5) and Parker (1909:272-5). Excavations
were conducted within it by Ayrton (Hocart 1924:48-54), Paranavitana (1936), P.E.P.
Deraniyagala (1958:G20-3), Sestieri (ibid. 1960:G26-31, app. II) and Godakumbura
(1961:G69-71). These accounts, notably by Deraniyagala, indicated that the Gedige area
possessed a deeply stratified deposit with artefacts ante-dating the Christian era in its lower
levels. Although little by way of chronological information was provided, it was none the less
clear that no other site of comparable potential for chronological investigations was known
from Sri Lanka. Hence, the choice of a site for excavation was Anuradhapura.

The Site
Anuradhapura is located in the lowlands of the Dry Zone in North-Central Sri Lanka at an
°
elevation of ca. 80m above mean sea level. The temperature is stable around 28 C with very
little seasonal or diurnal fluctuation. The annual rainfall is 1000-1500mm with a peak during
the winter monsoon of October - December. Precipitation occurs on approximately 100 days
and severe summer droughts, lasting up to six months, are not infrequent. The natural
vegetation comprises a dry variant of tropical evergreen rain-forest, with a deciduous

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