Where’s Perfection ?

The Sigiriya Frescoes were painted quickly on wet plaster, leaving little room for error. The paint is immediately "sucked into" the plaster, making it difficult to erase or over-paint mistakes. The frescoes were painted 100 meters above ground, and they were never intended for close examination. The frescoes survive today in a small indentation in the rock, occupying a minor position in the massive tapestry that covered the rock. Consequently, they may have received less artistic attention than the larger frescoes. The frescoes were painted by artists high above the ground, working long hours, perched on flimsy bamboo scaffolding. Mistakes would inevitably have been made. The left frescoes contain two errors: the lady holding the lotus blossom has her thumb repositioned, and the handmaiden on the right has a mistake just above her left breast. The artist initially positioned her hand in front of her breast but later changed her mind and repositioned her hand elsewhere. He covered up his mistake by painting a red blouse called thanapatiya.