Locating Artistic Linkages Between Early Coastal Andhara (India) and Early Sri Lanka: Unraveling Diffusion Dynamics of Art Across the Coastal Landscape

Sreyashi Ray Chowdhuri

The situational significance of India prompted vibrant maritime activities and cross-cultural transactions. In the context of maritime activities, Andhra Pradesh on the southeastern coast of the India played a distinct role. Coastal Andhra witnessed a vast network of indigenous and foreign trade from the Early Historic period. The presence of ports (Dharanikota) and marts (Ghantasala) and other entrepots along the Andhra coast bear testimony to this. Moreover, the resources of the hinterland witnessed in the rich agricultural wealth and industrial activities coupled with the concentration of flourishing Buddhist sites at the mouth of river Krishna increased the prosperity of the ports facilitating dynamic inland and long-distance trade. With regard to international trade, the archaeological and literary evidences suggest coastal Andhra's commercial and religio-cultural interaction with the West, Sri Lanka and parts of South East Asia .Incidentally Sri Lanka played a distinct part in this network and their interconnectedness with coastal Andhra is manifested by the recovery of several artefacts( ritualistic objects, iconoplastic antiquities, architectural fragments, etc.) from Sri Lanka which bear Andhra's artistic lineage. Such cultural linkages are not only fascinating but requires an assiduous study. In this paper an attempt will be made to analyse the artistic linkages visualized in the artefacts of early coastal Andhra and early Sri Lanka and delve into a trans-oceanic study as a desideratum to this shared heritage. Furthermore, the research will also endeavour to trace the probable route of artistic transmission, possible agencies of exchange and plausible role of coastal religious communities in this exchange.