This gallery of rock art from Sri Lanka is based on the research of Raj Somadeva PhD, Professor in Archaeology at the Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology of the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka.

 

A comprehensive field survey was initiated by a team headed by Professor Raj Somadeva in 2011 to make a systematic documentation of the rock paintings and engraving sites (RPES) in the country. The geometric markings are confined to the engraved sites, while the painted sites consist of iconic and symbolic representations. The majority of the sites reported are situated in almost impassable terrains of the jungle areas. 

 

Some of the sites are found in areas currently occupied by the aboriginal Vädda community. The research of Diane Hawkey, based on the Dental Morphology analysis, suggests that the dental pattern of the Vädda is highly similar to Sri Lanka's prehistoric hunter-gatherers; the Vädda are the modern-day descendants of the earliest inhabitants of Sri Lanka. Modern ethnographic observations regarding biological and cultural ties support this.