Kenimadala

Kenimadala is an architectural term utilised in medieval Sinhalese timber structures.^[1] It is used to describe the circular roof plate or structural member where the rafters, śalākā, connect at the apex of a domed or conical roof.^[2] The roof of a dageba or cetiya, above the stupa were generally domical in shape and were constructed of timber rafters which were held together on the top by means of a circular boss or kenimandala.

It is also known as Kannikā in Pali,^[3] which means 'sun-gate', as it represents the doorway where the worthy or arhat leave the world.^[4]

See also

• Madol Kurupawa
• Pekada

References

1. Chandana, Jayawardana; K. Peiris; S. Wijesinghe (2015). "Engineer: Journal of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka". Historical Timber Structures in Sri Lanka: A Review on Pekada, Kenimandala and Madolkurupawa. 47: 63.
2. Snodgrass, Adrian (1992). The Symbolism of the Stupa. Motilal Banarsidass Publisher. p. 280. ISBN 9788120807815.
3. "Dictionary Definition - kaṇṇikā". Buddhist Door. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
4. Coomaraswamy, Ananda K. (2020). The Door in the Sky: Coomaraswamy on Myth and Meaning. Princeton University Press. p. 237. ISBN 9780691219332.

External links

• ICOMOS International Committee on Wood. Colombo: International Council on Monuments and Sites. 1993.

Further reading

• Scriver, Peter; Prakash, Vikramaditya, eds. (2007). Colonial Modernities: Building, Dwelling and Architecture in British India and Ceylon. Routledge. ISBN 9781134150250.