Photograph of the remains of a stone wall and steps near the ruins of the Royal Palace at Sigiriya, Sri Lanka, by Joseph Lawton, albumen print, 1870-1.

The remains of a stone wall on a grassy mountainside appear on the left with rock faces beneath. Steps leading to the top of the wall run along a large rock face on the right and two male figures pose on the steps.

This photograph was one of a set given to the museum by Mrs Moberley. Her late husband George Moberley, had collected them while in India and Ceylon during the1860-70s. See Registry file MA/1/M2393

The photograph was initially part of the photographic collection held in the National Art Library. The markings on the mount are an indication of the history of the object, its movement through the museum and the way in which it is categorised.

The mount is white. In the top right corner of the mount is a label which reads: A.in.SIGIRIA. A label printed with title is pasted on the back of the mount. The museum number is handwritten in the bottom right hand corner. The top of the mount is embossed with the National Art Library seal, with the words 'LIBRARY/ VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM'.

Historical significance: Built by King Kashyapa between 477-485, the Royal Palace was surrounded by a wall and double moat. The stone remains and steps in this photograph may have formed part of the protective wall. .

Sigiriya is dominated by the remains of the palace fortress, built on the 200m high plateau of Lion Rock. Both Sigiriya and the rock on which it rests derive their names (Sinha-Giri) from the lions which reputedly occupied nearby caves in ancient times. Built between 477-485 AD, the royal palace was surrounded by a wall and double moat. The entire site, including the city, cisterns and ponds, was built over a period of seven years and effectively abandoned after 18 years. Ancient ruins of pipes and rock-cut channels remain, which provided water for bathing pools in the palace above and fountains in the gardens below. Excavations have revealed surface and underground drainage systems with water pumps powered by windmills. The citadel ceased to be a palace after Moggallana’s reign and was inhabited by monks until 1155, when it was abandoned. It was not rediscovered by archaeologists until 1828. Sigiriya was designated a World Heritage Site in 1982 and is now frequently referred to as the ‘eighth wonder of the world’.

This is one of a series of photographs taken by Lawton of the archaeological sites of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya (1870-71). This series was commissioned by the Archaeological Committee (set up by the Governor of Ceylon in 1868) and became his signature work. Photographic surveys, conducted by Lawton and competitors such as the more prolific commercial firm WLH Skeen and Co., coincided with antiquarian scholarship that emerged as a result of the deforestation necessary to lay roadways, railways and plantations in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. This process was propelled by an expansion of both the export and tourist economies. A colleague of Lawton's proposed that his involvement in the physical labour of clearing the archaeological sites that he photographed contributed to his death. After Lawton's death, many prints were produced by the firm for the tourist market, however, the original negatives were sold to a variety of different clients and are now considered to be lost.

Likely printed between 1872 and 1882

Attribution note: This is one of a series of photographs taken by Lawton of the archaeological sites of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya (1870-71), commissioned by the Archaeological Committee which the Governor of Ceylon set up in 1868. Two sets of these photographs were produced by Lawton: one which remained in Sri Lanka (now in such poor condition it is considered to be unusable) and a second which was sent to the Colonial Office in London (first kept in the Library of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and now in The National Archives). After Lawton's death in 1872, further images were produced by the firm under the supervision of his wife and sold largely to a tourist market. Reprints of this particular photograph appear in an album currently held in the Word and Image Department (PH.1202:85-1920) as well as in the Scott Collection (92/16/3) within the India Office Select Materials of the British Library.

Sigiriya (Lion's rock) is a 200 metere high rock on which a fortress has been built. The site consists of a palace, gardens, cisterns and ponds, all of which were built between 477-485 AD by King Kashyapa. The palace was surrounded by a wall and double moat. The stone remains and steps in this photograph may have formed part of the protective wall.

Joseph Lawton (died 1872), a British commercial photographer, was active in Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) between 1866 and 1872. Though he was initially employed by the firm HC Bryde, by the mid 1860s he had established his own studio in Kandy. Lawton was commissioned by the Archaeological Committee to photograph the main archaeological sites in Sri Lanka. He created a unique series of aesthetically powerful images of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya.

Official photographic surveys conducted by Lawton and others documented the architecture and facilitated antiquarian scholarship. However, as a commercial photographer, Lawton made sure that his photographs were not merely documentary. His images were taken to appeal to tourists and overseas buyers seeking picturesque views of ancient ruins overgrown with creepers and gnarled trees.

2262-1912