An iconographic study of the Kareikkar Ammeiyar sculpture of the Polonnaruwa period

Abstract

The main source of this research paper is Kareikkar Ammeiyar sculpture exhibited in Polonnaruwa Archaeological Museum. With a very deformed female body, she is depicted in a posture of singing something while holding a tambourine. Most of the bronze sculptures of Hindu women of this era are built with full bodies. But the research problem here is to find out what caused the creation of this sculpture with a completely different deformed, fallen body, and what visual elements were used in the creation of this sculpture. Also, archaeologists have presented various ideas and suggestions about this sculpture, but there has been no formal study from the perspective of art history. Building a sculpture has its own principles. The purpose of this is to analyse this sculpture using the principles of rhythm, balance, proportion, use of space, gaze and scale, There, the figurative research method is used on the sculpture. Also, what are the contemporary social and political relationships that led to the creation of the statue have also been studied. This sculpture illustrates how the creator of a work of art has the freedom to visualize and recreate a religious story using a three-dimensional model. Taken as a whole, its depictions represent the Shiva veneration traditions of 11th century Sri Lanka. The sculpture exhibited in the Polonnaruwa Museum is used as the primary source for data collection. Books, magazines, newspapers and research articles have been studied as secondary sources.