A watercolour painting which depicts a spiritual being with a snake-like animal at its feet. The being's skin is white. It is wearing a blue skirt that ends just below the knee and curls outward at the hip. The bottom of the skirt has a border made up of white, yellow, brown, and purple horizontal stripes. The main body of the skirt is covered in thinner horizontal stripes, and consists of two pieces which come together in the front. A long piece of fabric hangs down from the waist. Decorative bands encircle the being's biceps, wrists, and ankles. A smaller snake-like creature is wrapped around its neck as an adornment. The being has large, round eyes and a grinning fanged mouth. Long, white and black decorations protrude upwards from its headdress. Two large discs protrude from the sides of its head. In one hand, the being is holding a fish by the tail. In the other, it is holding a short, pointed object with a long, thin handle. The snake-like creature at the being's feet has a long, scaled body that gets thicker near its head. It has large, round eyes, and human-like teeth. Its tail is wrapped around the being's ankle. The painting's background is red and green, and a rectangular black border surrounds the image. Blue and white oblong rings radiate from the being's head and shoulders.

• Iconographic Meaning

  Identified as a Raksha (demon)/Yakka; mischievous or evil. Naga is a mythical semidivine being, half human and half cobra.

• Narrative

  The collector, Dr. Michael Egan, wrote his doctoral thesis on healing rituals in Sri Lanka. His fieldwork was carried out in the south of Sri Lanka, in the village of Kadurupokuna (Hambantota District), between Sept. 1965 and Nov. 1966.

• History Of Use

  The imagery is possibly associated with ritual healing in Sri Lanka. The set of watercolours (3392/3-34) is said to depict spirits that inhabit planets, or deviyo (minor gods) or rakshas and yakkas (evil or mischievous beings). These beings are often depicted in masked dances and exorcisms.

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• Type of Item painting
• Culture Sinhalese
• Measurements height 37.1 cm, width 27.4 cm (overall)

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• Previous Owner Michael John Egan, Carol Egan
• Received from Carol Egan

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• Made in Sri Lanka

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• Creation Date between 1960 and 1966
• Collection Date between 1965 and 1966
• Ownership Date before 1977, before October 2, 2019
• Acquisition Date on October 2, 2019

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• Item Classes paintings; works on paper
• Condition good
• Accession Number 3392/0025