Sri Lanka is an island Country located in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of India. It was known as Ceylon before 1972, and Serendib and Sinhale, among other names, before that. Sri Lanka, remained under the control of Portugal, the Netherlands and the Great Britain.
After it became independent in the 1940s, a civil war erupted between Sinhalese majority and Tamil Tigers which devastated the nation. The country is a member of the Commonwealth and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. It is known as “the teardrop island” for its unique shape and “the spice island” for its flavors.
These rare historical photos show Sri Lanka in the late 19th century.
#1 The Pettah neighborhood in Colombo (Ceylon, today Sri Lanka), 1880.
#2 Giant Banyan trees, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#3 Kandy Lake in Ceylon, 1880s.
#4 Native quarters in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#5 Colombo Harbour, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#6 Dhobis under Palmyras, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#7 Tea Harvesters Bringing Leaves to Weight Scales, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#8 The intricately carved stone entrance to a Hindu temple, Sri Lanka, 1885.
#9 Main street of Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#10 Worshippers and monks at the Buddhist shrine of Adam’s Peak, Sri Lanka, 1885.
#11 The Grand Orienta Hotel at Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1885.
#12 Workers on the Nanu Oya Extension Railway, Sri Lanka, 1883.
#13 Ferry boat in Ceylon, 1880s.
#14 A driver and his passenger in a rickshaw in Kandy, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#15 Adam’s Peak Falls in Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#16 A ruined Buddhist temple carved from a rock at Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#17 Village, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#18 Brahma Temple, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#19 Buddhist priests, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#20 Colombo, Ceylon, 1880s
#21 Country road, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#22 Elephants, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#23 Giant bamboo, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#24 Kandy, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#25 Negumbo Canal, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#26 Sanquhar estate, Pussellawa, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#27 Sinhalese fishing boat, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#28 Snake charmers, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#29 Tamil coolie picking tea, Sri Lanka, 1875
#30 The base of a Dagoba in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#31 The lake, Kandy, Sri Lanka, 1880s
#32 Buddhist monks and worshippers gather at Anoy, Sri Lanka, for the exposition ceremony of the Buddha’s tooth, 1880s.
#33 Elephants carrying shrines and worshippers in a Buddhist procession in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1880.
#34 Construction of the Nanu Oya Extension Railway, Ceylon, 1883
#35 Indian religious festival with a parade of elephants at Peschava in Ceylon (Sri Lanka), 1880s.
#36 Railway viaduct, Ceylon, 1883.
#37 Indian boy and girl in Ceylon (Sri Lanka), 1880.
#38 Several Sri Lankan men carry a white woman and boy in a litter, 1880s.
#39 A white family taking tea on the lawn of their estate in Ceylon, 1880s.
#40 People and a camel on a wide street in a city in Ceylon, ca. 1880s.
#41 Four male Singhalese dancers in traditional costum, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#42 A group of men dressed in white robes standing next to another group of men, several of whom carry straw fans, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#43 Men line a narrow street in Ceylon, 1899.
#44 Tamil women and men in Ceylon, 1880.
#45 A native family , Sri Lanka, 1880.
#46 Moorish Coolies, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#47 Malay boys and girls, Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#48 Family with bullock cart in Ceylon, 1800s.
#49 Buddist perahera in Sri Lanka, 1880s.
#50 Village scene near Kandy, Sri Lanka, 1880s
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thank you so much! I enjoyed and so educational – Sri Lankan Buddhist
