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| Sri Lanka has a rich and varied heritage of traditional arts and crafts.The products of age-old techniques, tool of natural, indigenous raw materials, Sri Lanka’s handicrafts are fashioned in the cottage of craftsmen and women or in rural crafts centers and incorporate a legacy of centuries of inbred skill. The ancient Indo Aryan social system of Sri Lanka assigned certain Trades and pursuits to specific socio-economic groups or castes; it was within these castes that traditional skills were preserved with a high degree of purity and a distinct ethnic identity. |
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With increasing demand from export markets, Sri Lankan handicrafts have been able to successfully combine certain modern trends in design and colour choices with traditional craftsmanship to produce exquisite handicrafts which are much sought after. Sri Lankan handicrafts display an interesting degree of regional specialization based largely on occurrence of the natural raw materials used as well as historical factors such as royal patronage in the past and demand patterns. |
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| Wooden demon masks |
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| A specialized craft of the southern province, these masks were originally used in demon propitiation and curative rituals. They make colorful and dramatic décor items and re available in a range of sizes. |
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| Drums and musical instruments |
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| The wooden drums are layed in the Kandy Esala and other peraheras (Buddhist period-pageants) and at other events such as weddings, ceremonial functions and rituals are hand-made by craftsmen. They include drums such as the getabera, daula, tammettama and udekki. |
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| Marvelous Metal work |
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| Sri Lanka has long history of metalwork utilizing gold, silver, copper, tin, lead, iron and their various alloys. Gold and silver were usually restricted to the jewelry and decorative articles of the royalty, religion and ruling class. More utilitarian metal objects made of baser metals were important to all strata of society. |
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