In a collaborative international provenance research which was concluded in April 2022, six Sri Lankan objects from the Rijksmuseum collection in the Netherlands were confirmed to be of Lankan origin. A golden and a silver kasthãné (sabre) or sabre, a golden knife, two maha thuwakku (wall guns) and Lewke Disave’s cannon—all belonging to the Kandyan kingdom—were confirmed to be war booty, obtained by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) during the siege of the palace of Kandy in 1765 when large scale looting of Kandyan objects took place.
Following the conclusion of the provenance study, a diplomatic request was made by the Hon. Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Vidura Wickremanayake to the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science to return the six objects to Sri Lanka. It is significant that this was the first request which was taken up before the independent commission appointed by the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to assess and facilitate the return of colonial objects to their respective countries of origin.
Commenting on the occasion, Director General of the Department of National Museums, Ms. Sanuja Kasthuriarachchi notes that the whole exercise is a historical moment in many perspectives. “The laborious provenance research has led to the dispelling of many myths and ambiguities that shrouded our Kandyan artifacts for centuries. It is heartening to see these cultural symbols which mirror the cleverness of Sri Lankan artisans of yesteryear, reclaiming their due pride of place in their land of birth.”
The joint research which was carried out under the Pilot Project Provenance Research on Objects of the Colonial era (PPROCE) of the Rijksmuseum is also a landmark in Sri Lankan provenance studies. Since the Provenance Report of Dr. P.H.D.H. de Silva, the Director of the National Museum in Colombo in the 1970s, very little notice was taken of the Kandyan objects in discussion until this recent intense study. The international joint provenance research represented researchers from Sri Lanka and the Netherlands. The local research team comprised Additional Director General (Cultural), Department of National Museums—Senarath Wickramasinghe, Prof. Asoka de Zoysa and Dr. Ganga Dissanayake from the University of Kelaniya and firearms specialist and the author of several books on the Kandyan period, Chamikara Pilapitiya. The Department of National Archives too made a significant contribution to the research by providing numerous archival material. Scores of historical documents, Dutch records, art and craftsmanship of objects in study, their artistic value, technology and chemical composition were among the criteria adopted by the experts in determining the provenance of the Kandyan objects.
The research confirms that both golden and silver kasthanes were made in the royal workshop and were probably meant for a Kandyan aristocrat. The intricately crafted knife which also reflects the skill of the 18th century Kandyan workmanship, formed part of the royal garb. The two wall guns, decorated with woodwork and engraved symbols, represent a unique and early Sri Lankan tradition in gun-making and warfare. Weighing 28kg each, these guns are unique examples of mobile, heavy artillery used by the troops of the Kandyan king to defend the city and the palace. Richly ornamented with silver, gold and gemstones, Lewke Disave’s cannon is another interesting object among the six artifacts. Embellished with Kandyan designs such as liyawel, Kalpa vrukshaya and nari lata, the cannon bears an inscription which claims the Kandyan aristocrat Lewke Disave to be the donor of the cannon.
These historical artifacts are currently on display at the Colombo National Museum.