The
Galle Trilingual Inscription is a
stone tablet with an inscription in three languages,
Chinese,
Tamil and
Persian, located in
Galle,
Sri Lanka. Dated 15 February 1409, it was installed by the Chinese admiral
Zheng He in Galle during
his grand voyages.
[1]
The text concerns offerings made by him and others to the mountain
Sri Pada (Adam's Peak) in Sri Lanka. The Chinese inscription mentions offerings to
Buddha, the Persian in
Perso-Arabic script to
Allah and the Tamil inscription mentions offering to
Tenavarai Nayanar (Hindu god
Vishnu).
[2][3] The admiral invoked the blessings of Hindu deities here for a peaceful world built on trade.
[4] The stele was discovered in Galle in 1911 and is now preserved in the
Colombo National Museum.
On his third voyage,
Zheng He sailed from
China in 1409, and carried with him the
trilingual tablet which he planned to erect in Sri Lanka. The date equates to 15 February 1409, indicating that it was inscribed in
Nanjing before the fleet set out. The Chinese portion gives praise to the
Buddha and records lavish offerings in his honour.
The tablet was found by an engineer, S. H. Thomlin, in 1911 in Galle. It can now be seen in the national museum in Sri Lanka. A modern replica of the stele has been installed in the Treasure Boat Shipyard Park in Nanjing, along with copies of other steles associated with the voyages of
Zheng He .
Offerings[edit]
1,000 pieces of
gold; 5,000 pieces of
silver; 50 rolls of
embroidered silk in many colours; 50 rolls of silk
taffeta, in many colours; 4 pairs of jewelled
banners, gold embroidered and of variegated
silk, 2 pairs of the same picked in red, one pair of the same in yellow, one pair in black; 5 antique brass
incense burners; 5 pairs of antique brass
flower vases picked in gold on
lacquer, with gold stands; 5 yellow
brass lamps picked in gold on lacquer with gold stands; 5 incense
vessels in vermilion red, gold picked on lacquer, with gold stands; 6 pairs of golden lotus flowers; 2,500 catties of scented
oil; 10 pairs of
wax candles; 10 sticks of fragrant incense.
The date of 15 February 1409 on the Galle Trilingual Inscription possibly refers to when the trilingual inscription was erected in Galle, indicating that it was put up during the homeward journey of the second voyage.
[1] If not, the inscription could have been prepared in China and erected between 1410 when the fleet arrived at Galle to 1411 during the third voyage.
[5] J. J. L. Duyvendak (1939) states that the inscription must have been prepared in China on 15 February 1409 and erected during the third expedition (1409–1411), because he thinks that the 15 February 1409 date is connected to the dates for the conference of honors to two deities,
Tianfei (天妃) on 21 January 1409 and Nanhaishen (南海神) on 15 February 1409.
[6]
Gallery