Tissamaharama Slab Inscription (Colombo National Museum)

Tissamaharama Slab Inscription (Colombo National Museum)
Tissamaharama Slab Inscription (Sinhala: තිස්සමහාරාම පුවරු ලිපිය, කොළඹ කෞතුකාගාරය) is a Sinhalese stone inscription discovered in Tissamaharama in Hambantota District, Sri Lanka. It is now preserved in the stone gallery of the  Colombo National Museum . The inscription records a grant made to a Buddhist monastery by King Sirimeghavanna [(303-331 A.D.) Ranawella, 2005] or by King Mahanama [(412-434 A.D.) Paranavitana, 1933]. The stone inscription was found at some spot in Tissamaharama, the ancient capital of Rohana. It was kept in the Assistant Government Agent's quarters at Hambantota and later brought to the Colombo Museum for conservation (Muller, 1883). Content The inscription has been inscribed on one side of the slab which is 4 ft. tall and 1 ft. 5 inches wide. Depending on the scripts and language used, the inscription has been dated by scholars to the 3rd - 4th centuries A.D. (Ranawella, 2005). It reveals a grant of several lands for the maintenance of monks of the meditati…