OB03026 Anuradhapura Slab of Mahinda IV
IN03031 Anuradhapura Slab Inscription of Mahinda IV
The inscription of 49 lines is written in the same style and language than the two tablets of Mihintale (IN3030). It was engraved just a few months later than those ones, during the reign of the king Mahinda IV (975-91 A.D.). It records rules for the administration of certain lands and villages. It also contains an important mention of the temple of the Buddha’s ‘Tooth-relic’ (Daḷ-dā-ge), which enabled the identification of this temple, rebuilt by Mahinda IV in the centre of the town, as the ruined site known as the Daḷadā Māligāva, situated south-east of the Thūparāma dāgäba.
OB03025b Mihintale Tablet B
OB03025a Mihintale Tablet A
OB03025 Mihintale Tablets of Mahinda IV
Mihintale. The Bhójana Sáláwa (or Refrectory), showing the two inscribed stones at the entrance. Photographed by Joseph Lawton (d. 1872) active in Sri Lanka between 1866 and 1872. V&A 82756
IN03030 Mihintale Inscription of Mahinda IV
The inscription is written on two granite slabs, which stand near the old refectory, also called Bhōjana-sālā, on the left of the third set of steps (on four) on the western slope of the hill at Mihintale. The inscription is divided equally between the two slabs, each one bearing 58 lines of Sinhalese prose. They were installed by the king Mahinda IV (975-91 A.D.) and record rules and regulations for the administration of the monastery (the name of the monastery is not mentioned) and payments made to the service staff.
OB03022 Anuradhapura Slab of Kassapa V
Abhayagiri vihara, Anuradhapura
IN03027 Anuradhapura Slab Inscription of Kassapa V
IN03025 Vessagiri Slab 2 Inscription B
Vessagiri, or more commonly in Sinhalese Vessagiriya, is the traditional name of a forest-bound cluster of rocks in Anurādhapura. The site features three hummock-boulders of gneiss rock in a line from north to south (Rock A, Rock B and Rock C). The hummocks are surrounded by the ruins of a monastery, which had its cells in the caves of Rocks B and C (twenty-three caves in total). Some of the caves are inscribed with dedications to the Buddhist priesthood, plus there are a number of other rock inscriptions at the site. In addition, two inscribed slabs associated with Vessagiri are preserved in the museum at Anurādhapura. One of the slab inscriptions (IN03023) is of the king Dappula V (A.D. 940-952) and records a royal offering to the Virāṅkurā monastery. The second slab is inscribed on its front and back with inscriptions of the king Mahinda IV (975-991) detailing benefactions made to the clergy of the monastery Bo-Upulvan-Kusub-giri Vehera. The inscription on the back of this slab is dealt with here (see IN03024 for the inscription on the front).