Simple ceremony launches Pemberley study centre

By Frederick Medis

Pemberley - a very 'Eng-lish' name from a leisured past necessarily conjures a vision of nostalgia, blended with the atmosphere and style of a summer holiday in the hills in the days of the British Raj.

As invitees to the ceremonial opening of the Pemberley International Research Centre in July alighted from their vehicles and moved upward past the grass-tufted slopes of Viharagala Estate, they were greeted along the limestone-pebbled pathway by flower-bedecked girls dressed in a riot of colour.

And then, on the summit above tiered and manicured green lawns, the green roof of Pemberley House came into view, around it beds of roses, orange-gold dahlias and scarlet and purple bougainvillea, and above it, three festooned marquees of woven green coconut leaf embellished with auspicious symbols in gokkola of lions, elephants and punkalas. One could almost sense the shade of Sir Thomas Lipton as he moved about the tea-gardens of an era lost in the mists of time. Everything was there to complete the picture, including small four-legged teapoys set out with spiced milk-rice and kokis, accompanied by a beli fruit punch served in innovatively designed chalices made for the occasion from the shell of the beli fruit.

As we sat in the shaded cool of the marquees, away from the midday brilliance that bathed the Haputale hills, the splendid mountain panorama of rock and tea plantation paled into a blue vista of unbelievable, mellow beauty.

Among the visitors were many from foreign climes, drawn from a composite group of professional and academic disciplines. I could not help remarking to fellow-guests at my table that we were witnessing a stylish blending of a morning at Royal Ascot with the pageantry of a Maharajah's welcome: the men spruced up and purposeful, the ladies elegantly attired in predominantly pastel colours, some with delicate, shady hats of soft Italian straw. Sarees quivered and billowed in the steady breeze which ran its fingers through the treetops on the hillside.

It was indeed a day to remember, meticulously organised with a keen eye to detail, as flawless as a musical composition. The ceremony of inauguration was kept down to classic simplicity, yet perfected by the unobtrusive presence of religious dignitaries, by the ceremonial lighting of oil lamps and by the boiling of milk to the festive staccato drumming of the traditional magul bera of Uva.

Dr. Brendon Gooneratne, generous benefactor, convenor and host of this memorable occasion, was in carefree casuals. He was alert and precise in his address of welcome, introduction and recognitive thanks as he spoke succinctly of his imaginative concept and of those who had contributed to it - an international study centre and institution for research scholars everywhere, planned, formulated, constructed and gifted to a Trust at his personal expense with endowments.

The writer, one of Sri Lanka's foremost numismatists, is an Executive Committee Member of the Royal Asiatic Society.

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