The ocean of story, being C.H. Tawney's translation of Somadeva's ...

APPENDIX II ROMANCE OF BETEL-CHEWING 251
carved in the shape of animals one is a
grotesque horse,
another a peacock.
Excellent illustrations of smaller specimens will be found
on Plate XLVI, with descriptions on pages 336 and 337, of
Coomaraswamy's Mediceval Sinhalese Art The chief interest
in this work, however, from our point of view, is the author's
excellent description of the betel-bag (pp. 238-239). This
article has now almost entirely given place to the box, but
is of high antiquity, and has been found represented on
4
very early sculptures (see later, p. 254n ). Owing to the fact
that Coomaraswamy's work was limited to 425 copies, and
is consequently exceedingly rare, the following description
of the betel-bag is given in full :
" The betel-bags (Plates XXX-XXXIII) vary in size from
small ones carried in the waist-belt to very large ones, four
feet or more in length. The latter were carried by a servant
in processions or on journeys, hung over the shoulder.
Noblemen were never without an attendant carrying their
betel-bags (pp. 33-34) and lime-box ; less important personages
carried their own. The large bags are exactly the
same in construction as the small ones a bag of oval shape
made of blue cloth lined with undyed cotton cloth, which
opens nearly half-way down the whole length at the sides ;
the inner part is separated into two divisions. The inner
division, again consisting of a double piece of cloth, is also
'
'
used as a pocket, called hora payiya, hidden pocket
has a very small opening at the upper end, through which
spices, money and other valuables are put. Larger things
are carried in the two outer pockets. The handle is made of
embroidered cloth, or of a band of plaited cord, and is finished
off at the end with a beautiful and ingeniously worked and
very hard ball (vegediborale) and tassel (pohottuva). The
is embroidered on both sides in red and
outside of the bag
white cotton with conventional designs, sometimes very
elaborately. Bags of later make are often done in red cloth,
probably because the blue hand-made cloth could no longer
be obtained some of these are ;
equally good, the tradition
both in design and stitches being for some time well maintained.
Few or no good bags are now made, partly owing to
the lack of proper materials. One of the most perfect small
I have seen was of red hand-made cloth embroidered
bags
entirely with silk, the use of which is very exceptional. I
have referred to the plaited cord of which the handles are
;
it