Kandy

Kandy is still the religious and cultural capital of Sri Lanka, founded in the 14th Century capital of the Sinhalese kingdom from 1592-1815.

This was probably an advertising card for the Queen's Hotel, Kandy Lake, near the Temple of the Buddha's Tooth, and one of Sri Lanka's oldest continuously operating hotels, opened in 1869.

A lightly tinted real photo postcard from an unusual low angle.

Compare to the halftone color version of the same photograph.

A lavishly illustrated studio postcard; note how the presumably dancer is displaying her ghungroos on her ankles.

Compare to the black and white collotype of the same photograph.

[Original caption] Sacred Temple of Buddha's Tooth, Kandy. This, the Temple of Maligawa, was built for the purpose of enshrining that priceless Buddhist relic, the Tooth of Gautama Buddha.

[Original caption] Kandy From Lady Horton's Walk This walk winds picturesquely around one of the hills which overhang the little lake upon which the town of Kandy is situated.

[Original caption] Hindoo God Siva: Ceylon. This is Brahma the Creator under his manifestation as Siva the Destroyer and Reproducer. The peacock beside him is that ridden by Saraswati, goddess of music and speech, Brahmas wife.

A postcard in Plate's "Art Card" format, a slightly embossed halftone rich in color and atmosphere.

A refreshing portrait of a woman looking straight back at the viewer, not contained by the frame. Most probably from a portrait by Charles Scowen in the 1870s, who photographed the same woman in slightly different poses.