The division of labour involvement is an ultimate result of the production of palm leaf manuscripts? In relation to the Sri Lankan palm leaf manuscripts

Abstract

The traditions of writing on palm-leaves in Ceylon began in the 1st century AD, making a highly successful period. However, these materials couldn’t be used in their natural state for writing and required preparation involving the collaboration of skilled craftsmen such as ironsmiths, blacksmiths and carpenters. Palm-leaf manuscript must be consisted of four components: wooden boards (pot kambā), written palm leaves (pat iruwa), string (huya) and the ornament attached to the string (sakiyā). In order to complete these four components, the support of many people is needed. Creating palm-leaf manuscript was a complex skill to master, unlike modern printing of exercise books. This study aimed to explore the Production of Palm-Leaf manuscripts and the intricate labour Division process. The desk research method was utilised with existing documents and previous research over a particular topic. Through this study, it was tried to collect the information from the beginning of preparation of palmleaves and the internal labour contribution until the completion of manuscripts by considering the labour force, equipment, arts and skills that were used to preparing the palm-leaves for writing purposes. According to the published literature, attention has primarily given to the preservation of palm-leaf, the act of writing, their characteristics, available collections, catalogues of palm-leaf manuscripts, and the temples and locations where these manuscripts are stored. However, there is a dearth of writing documentation and discussion regarding the various art, tools, technological aspects, and labour involvement of the palm-leaf manuscript creation process. More specifically, the preparation of the manuscripts, the decorative aspects, the finishing touches, and the diverse roles of artisans and labourers in the production process also have been highlighted as areas that lacked sufficient documentation and discussion. Through this research, a more comprehensive understanding of the rich tradition of palmleaf manuscript production in the country was pursued.