Inscribed today on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, Sigiriya, an archaeological site in central Sri Lanka, may be one of the old-est gardens known in Asia. The late antique (4th–7th century) remains of buildings, zoomorphic architecture and rock paint-ings upon its central outcrop have elicited interpretation since the late 19th century (Figs 1 and 2). Sigiriya was thought to be a palace complex, and the art historian Ananda Coomaraswamy likened its paintings to the Gupta period (c. 320–550 CE) cave paintings at Ajanta in India (Coomaraswamy, 1971, p. 163).