Today we are going to talk about an architectural attraction of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. Most of the time people use this as the symbol of Sri Dalada Maligawa. That is the Octagonal Pavilion or “Paththirippuwa” as we call it in Sinhala.
This pavilion was designed during the reign of King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe of the Kandyan Kingdom. He called for the plan and design and lot of designers submitted their plans.
There was one plan & design which caught the eye of the young king. This was submitted by Devendra Moolachary. Later the king got a replica done using the bark of the banana tree. After inspection he really liked the design and then the Octagonal Pavilion was built.
The “Paththirippuwa” which is an architectural attraction at the entrance was built in 1812. That is 3 years before the English started ruling us. Paththirippuwa was built to be used by the king to address the people. It was an easy access as the kings palace was close by. Also for the king to watch the perahera, to watch sword fights and wrestling competitions were some of the reasons for building the Octagonal Pavilion.
If the countrymen face any emergencies then they would ring a huge bell called “Yukthiye Gantaraya” then the king would rush to the Paththirippuwa to solve the problem.
Dehigama Diyawadana Nilame played a major role in getting the Paththirippuwa in place and in fact it was actually his idea to get this done. Architect Devendra Moolachary got the required “Na” wood from Matale to built the Octagonal Pavilion.
Devendra Moolachary served King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe, King Rajadhi Rajasinghe and also King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe. He was an exceptionally talented architect who did a lot of architectural designs including the “Magul Maduwa ” or the Audience Hall. The name “Paththirippuwa” is derived from Tamil language, “Parthu” meaning ‘to see’ and “Iruppu’ meaning ‘seated’ and the combination meaning to sit and see something.
During the British ruling Paththirippuwa was used as “Kachcheri” or the District Secretariat and also as the office of Governor Robert Brownrigg. But later this was turned in to a library.
The great architect who designed the now world famous “Paththiruppuwa” or the Octagonal Pavilion and also the “Magul Maduwa ” or the Audience Hall was honoured by King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe by giving his “Nalal Patiya” a head ormament worn ny the king made out of gold embedded with gems. This is believed to be the biggest honour a king can offer. Unfortunately Devendra Moolachary’s ending was very tragic, which we will bring to you in another one of our articles in future. | Video: t.ly/Ma9
