Sensura Item Number: 3392/28 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
A watercolour painting which depicts a spiritual being seated on a large, black bird. The being has blue skin. It is wearing a brown skirt that ends just below the knee and curls outward at the hip. The bottom of the skirt has a border made up of white, yellow, blue, and brown horizontal stripes. The main body of the skirt is covered in thinner horizontal stripes, and consists of two pieces which come together in the front. A piece of fabric hangs down from the waist. A white, dotted sash is draped diagonally across the being's chest. Additional adornments wrap around its chest and neck, and decorative bands encircle its biceps, wrists, and ankles. It has half-moon shaped eyes, a small mouth, and stretched earlobes that extend down to its chin. The being is wearing a tiered headpiece that comes to a point at both sides. The headpiece has a teardrop shaped decoration on top, and side panels which extend across the being's shoulders. Both of the being's arms are raised at its sides, and in one hand it is holding a round object with a long handle. One of the being's legs is bent underneath it, and rests on the head and back of a large, black bird. The other leg is stretched toward the floor. The bird has long legs and a short beak. The background of the painting is bright yellow, and a rectangular black border surrounds the image. Gold and white oblong rings radiate from the being's head and shoulders.
The imagery is possibly associated with ritual healing in Sri Lanka. The set of watercolours (3392/3-34) is said to depict spirits that inhabit planets, or deviyo (minor gods) or rakshas and yakkas (evil or mischievous beings). These beings are often depicted in masked dances and exorcisms.
The collector, Dr. Michael Egan, wrote his doctoral thesis on healing rituals in Sri Lanka. His fieldwork was carried out in the south of Sri Lanka, in the village of Kadurupokuna (Hambantota District), between Sept. 1965 and Nov. 1966.