A tale of three cities: Urban transformations in ancient Sri Lanka

Presented by Dr Keir Strickland
Senior Lecturer in Asian Archaeology at La Trobe University

Almost 2,500 years ago, Anuradhapura emerged as the first urban centre, and the first capital, of Sri Lanka. This was a status it maintained for almost 1,500 years, before being suddenly abandoned in the late 10th century CE. Following the urban collapse of Anuradhapura, urbanisation and royal power appear to have shifted south to a new urban centre at Polonnaruwa. However, this urban transition (as well as the form and function of ‘lesser’ urban sites during these periods) remains poorly understood. This paper presents some of the preliminary findings of ARC funded Polonnaruwa Archaeology Project, conducted over field-seasons at the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Polonnaruwa and Sigiriya in 2024 and 2025 by staff and students from La Trobe University and the University of Kelaniya.

Biography

Dr Keir Strickland is a Senior Lecturer in Asian Archaeology at La Trobe University, a post he has held since he joined the university in 2016. Previously, he was a Lecturer in Archaeology for four years at the University of the Highlands and Islands in northern Scotland. His PhD (Durham University, 2011) presented an archaeological reassessment of the collapse of the Anuradhapura Kingdom. Since then, he has primarily conducted research in Nepal and Sri Lanka, examining urban trajectories, archaeologies of Buddhism, international heritage management, and issues of sustainability, resilience and collapse in the past.

Sailing against the wind: Merchant sailing ships during the Roman period

Presented by Dr Christopher Davey
Executive Director, the Australian Institute of Archaeology; Honorary Fellow, School of Historical and Philosophical Studies, University of Melbourne

Ships during the Roman period have sometimes been described as being ‘nothing new’. The evidence, however, strongly suggests otherwise. Economic historians have pointed out that the substantial maritime trade conducted during the Roman Empire must have depended, at least partly, on significant technological nautical advances. Iconography, literature and archaeology reveal that Roman ships were many times larger than those from earlier periods and could routinely make headway against moderate winds, giving them the capacity to conduct bulk-commodity trade on a regular schedule. The talk will illustrate the evidence for these achievements and explain how the transition came about.