The Paranirvana of Buddha, Gal Vihara, Polonnaruva, Ceylon

About the Artwork

During the British colonial period in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), a 12th-century monastic establishment with a colossal stone sculpture of the reclining Buddha had fallen into ruins. The photographer’s intentional inclusion of a Sri Lankan man, leaning against a pillar at the front of the composition, and a colonial Englishman, clambering over Buddha’s body, underscores how differently they interact with the site. The Sri Lankan visitor views the ruins with devotional reverence; the Englishman treats it as a place of adventurous entertainment.

Inscriptions

Written in pencil on recto of mount: "Reclining Buddha at the Gal Vihara Polonnaruva"; in pencil on verso: "#15"

Exhibition history

Year in Review, 1976. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 1-March 6, 1977). Text and Image in Southern Asia. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26, 2022-March 5, 2023).

Quick Overview

Artist: Joseph Lawton (British, d. 1874)
Date: 1870–71
Medium: albumen print
Dimensions: Image: 21.4 x 28.2 cm (8 7/16 x 11 1/8 in.); Matted: 35.6 x 45.7 cm (14 x 18 in.)
Type: Photograph
Classification: Photograph
Department: Photography
Credit line: Gift of Louise S. Richards
Accession no.: 1976.156

Provenance

?–1976: Louise S. Richards, Oberlin, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1976–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.