Rijksmuseum

Knife (piha-kaetta)

Date

before 1765

Medium

crystal (lead glass), iron (metal), wood (plant material), gold (metal)

Culture

Sri Lanka

Institution

Rijksmuseum

This gold knife (piha-kaetta) was part of a group of six Sinhalese weapons from the Rijksmuseum’s collection that were returned to Sri Lanka by the Dutch State in 2023. After conducting joint provenance research, it was concluded that these weapons had been captured by Dutch troops during the siege of the city of Kandy in Sri Lanka in 1765. Hence, there was involuntary loss of possession, prompting the restitution of these objects. The knife and the other weapons are now on display at the Colombo National Museum.

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