CHAPTER XVII.

Dondra Head.--"The City of the Gods."--A Vast Temple.--A
Statue of Solid Gold.--A Famous Rock-Temple.--Buddhist
Monastery.--Caltura and its Distilleries.--Edible Bird's
Nests.--Basket-Making.--The Kaluganga.--Cinnamon
Gardens.--"The City of Gems."--A Magnificent Ruby.--The True
Cat's-Eye.--Vast Riches hidden in the Mountains.--Plumbago
Mining.--Iron Ore.--Kaolin.--Gem-Cutting.--Native
Swindlers.--Demoralizing Effect of Gem Digging.

At Dondra Head, which is now only a small fishing village, the
mouldering remains of a grand and ancient temple are seen, which are
believed to antedate those of Anuradhapura, though probably built by
the same race of people. It is well known that this locality was the
annual resort of multitudes of devotees, from the remotest ages.
Indeed, such was its sanctity that two thousand years ago it was
called Devi-nuwara,--"The City of the Gods." Ptolemy describes the
place as being the most renowned point of interest, for pilgrims, on
the island. There was a temple here, built by the Hindus in honor of
Vishnu, so gigantic that its dimensions sound to us almost fabulous.
Some of the finely carved columns which were once part of the
structure are still extant, though partially covered with jungle grass
and tangled vines. "So vast was this temple," says an ancient
historian, "that from the sea it had the appearance of a large city."
Tradition says that this shrine contained a thousand idols of stone
and bronze, and that there were a thousand Brahman priests attached to
it besides five hundred dancing-girls. We need not be surprised at
this, since these trained performers still form part of the equipment
of all temples in southern India, doubtless constituting priestly
harems.

These items are recorded by a Moorish traveler, John Battuta, who
visited the spot six hundred years ago. The same authority further
tells us that one of the most sacred idols was life-size, that is, as
large as an average man of his period, and was made of pure and solid
gold. "The eyes consisted of two rubies, of such lustre that they
shone like lanterns." The Portuguese first looted the temple, putting
its devotees to the sword, and then entirely demolished the edifice,
leaving it a shapeless mass of ruins. Over two hundred granite
monoliths, with many finely sculptured stones, still remain to testify
to the original character of this marvelous building.