Locations & Archeological Sites ‹‹ Go Back
Kollan Kanatta can be reached by entering Wilpattu National Park from Eluwankulama and taking the road from Sinna Uppu Villu toward the beach. A Navy camp is located in this area.
I have visited this location on many occasions and photographed the remains of burial urns once used to hold human remains during prehistoric times. These urns appear to have been exposed by sea erosion, and the visible remains have since been removed.
I have also observed Leopards and on many occasions, Elephants and other game in this area.
Kollan Kanatta is regarded as an important protohistoric and Early Iron Age archaeological site. It is believed to provide physical evidence of the transition from late Stone Age communities to a more literate society, well before the establishment of the Anuradhapura era.
The site is considered comparable in importance to the burial grounds at Pomparippu, Kantherodei, and Ibbankatuwa. Its discovery of early script and proto writing makes it especially significant to archaeologists. The excavations and examinations at this site have resulted in the discovery of the following
- Ancient clay artefacts
- Red Ware pottery
- Black-and-Red Ware pottery
- Primitive symbols and early Brahmi hierography
According to archeologists these finds suggest that the ancient communities of this region used standardized symbols to communicate and mark ownership before formal historical records became established.
