Language: Sinhalese

Description

Liya-vẹla is a type of decorative work that literally means "vegetable ornament". It is one of the hallmarks of Sinhalese work and is found executed in all materials including wood, ivory, horn, silver, gold, and iron, and even embroidery.

It consists of scrollwork of repetitive floral motifs, usually linked in an elongated series.

Liya-vela on the silver-clad forte of a Sinhalese kasthané.

Reference

Ananda K. Coomaraswamy; Medieval Sinhalese art: being a monograph on medieval Sinhalese arts and crafts, mainly as surviving in the eighteenth century, with an account of the structure of society and the status of the craftsmen, Second Edition, Pantheon Books, New York, 1956. Pages 98-99.