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Peradeniya University library celebrates 100 years with new logo and ola leaf glory
One hundred years ago, Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam laid the foundation for a library — by donating more than 1600 books in memory of his son Padmabah Arunachalam who died in a London car accident.
It was then known as the library of the Ceylon University College. The Library was shifted to Peradeniya in 1952 and was moved to the present premises in 1960 and ever since came to be known as the University of Peradeniya Library.
UNESCO chief Irina Bokova and officials examine the library's ola manuscripts while Chief Librarian Dr Rasiah Maheswaran explains their significance to them. File pic
On Tuesday, to mark the library’s 100th anniversary, a new logo was unveiled by Vice Chancellor Upul B. Dissanayake at the new five storey library building. The theme of the event was “The unpatrolled Repository of Knowledge at the Centre of Excellence – past and present.”
The library now boasts of 2500 ola leaf books not found in any university library in Sri Lanka. It was significant that the oldest copy of the Mahawansa was also found at this library by the committee searching for the oldest Mahawansa. A request has been made to the UNESCO to declare the oldest ola leaf Mahawamsa copy as a world heritage.
The committee had travelled across the country in search of the oldest Mahawamsa copy and finally found it at the University of Peradeniya Library, only two weeks ago, Chief Librarian Rasiah Maheswaran said. He said the ola manuscript was found in two volumes.
The library possesses the literary evidence that could trace the cultural legacy of Sri Lanka through the country’s palm leaf texts. It also holds the second largest collection of ola leaf books in Sri Lanka, and it is the largest collection found in any university, according to Dr. Maheswaran.
The university ola leaf collection has around 5000 items, with about 250,000 individual leaves. When Dr. Maheswaran was acting Chief Librarian, he had taken steps to set up a palm leaf manuscript preservation and conservation unit within the library.
The writing on the palm leaves collection was fading but Dr. Maheswaran, with the support of Vice Chancellor Prof Dissanayake had preserved the ola leaf manuscripts for future generations.
The UNESCO’s then Director General, Irina Bokova, and six other members visited the library in 2016 to view these palm leaf books. They were surprised to find the documents well preserved.
The library which began in 1921 has grown into a state-of-art library keeping up with modern technology. It now has a number of books and other items donated by various eminent men and women of letters, and the initial collection donated by Sir Ponnambalam is called the “Padmabah” collection.