Quick answer
The Sigiriya mirror wall is a plastered wall along the gallery path below the frescoes, originally polished to a high sheen. Between roughly the 8th and 10th centuries, visitors scratched more than 1,800 graffiti into it, mostly short verses responding to the painted women above. Senarath Paranavithana published 685 of them in 1956, and they are among the earliest surviving Sinhala poetry. Writing on the wall today is a criminal offence.
Key takeaways
- The Sigiriya mirror wall was originally polished plaster, smooth and reflective enough to earn its name.
- More than 1,800 graffiti have been recorded on the mirror wall, mostly written between roughly the 8th and 10th centuries.
- Senarath Paranavithana published 685 of the verses in his 1956 study, Sigiri Graffiti.
- Most verses respond to the painted women in the fresco gallery above, often in the voice of an admirer.
- Writing or scratching on the mirror wall today is a criminal offence, and visitors have been arrested for it.
What the Sigiriya mirror wall is
The Sigiriya mirror wall is a wall of brick and plaster that runs along the outer edge of the gallery path on the western face of the rock, below the fresco pocket. It protected people walking the narrow path and was finished with a highly polished surface.
Tradition says the polish was so fine that the king could see his reflection in it, which gives the wall its name. Recipes involving lime, egg white and honey appear in popular accounts, but they are not confirmed. What is certain is that parts of the wall still shine in low light.
The Sigiri graffiti
The Sigiri graffiti are short texts scratched into the mirror wall by visitors, mostly between roughly the 8th and 10th centuries, when Sigiriya was a monastery that drew pilgrims and travellers. More than 1,800 have been recorded, making the wall one of the largest collections of early Sinhala writing anywhere.
The writers included monks, soldiers, officials, women and ordinary travellers, and many signed their names and home villages. The largest group are verses addressed to or about the painted women, often in the voice of a smitten admirer.
- →More than 1,800 graffiti recorded.
- →Mostly roughly 8th to 10th century.
- →Writers included monks, soldiers, officials and women.
- →Most respond to the painted women in the gallery above.
What the Sigiriya verses say
The Sigiriya verses range from lyrical to blunt. Some praise the beauty of the painted women, some lament that they do not answer, and some reflect on how the women seem to wait for visitors who will never return. A few are critical of the other verses, which makes the wall one of the world's earliest comment threads.
The verses are written in an early form of Sinhala and are valuable for the history of the language and of Sinhala poetry. A guide can read several in translation, and the Sigiriya Museum displays examples.
The mirror wall today: look, never touch
Writing, scratching or even touching the Sigiriya mirror wall today is prohibited, and damaging it is a criminal offence under Sri Lanka's antiquities law. Visitors who have scratched their names into it in recent years have been arrested, and at least one was given a prison sentence.
The irony is not lost on anyone: the wall is precious because medieval visitors wrote on it. The difference is that their writing is now a thousand years old and irreplaceable, and modern additions destroy it.
- →Do not touch the polished surface.
- →Never write or scratch anything, anywhere on the site.
- →Damage is a criminal offence under antiquities law.
- →Recent offenders have been arrested.
How to see the mirror wall well
The Sigiriya mirror wall is passed on the gallery path after the fresco gallery, before the lion's paw terrace. Most people walk past it quickly because it looks, at first glance, like an ordinary orange-brown wall.
Stop and look along the surface at a low angle, where the polish and the scratched letters catch the light. Lankan Stays & Trails guides carry translations of a few verses so travellers can read them in the place they were written.
Frequently asked questions
Why is it called the mirror wall at Sigiriya?
Because it was originally polished to a high, reflective sheen. Tradition says the king could see his reflection as he walked beside it. Parts of the surface still shine when seen at a low angle in good light.
What is written on the Sigiriya mirror wall?
More than 1,800 graffiti, mostly short verses scratched by visitors between roughly the 8th and 10th centuries. Most respond to the painted women in the fresco gallery above, often as admirers, and many writers signed their names and villages.
How old is the Sigiriya graffiti?
Most of the Sigiri graffiti date from roughly the 8th to 10th centuries, during Sigiriya's monastic period after Kashyapa. Some are earlier or later, but the bulk were written roughly a thousand to twelve hundred years ago.
Can you write on the Sigiriya mirror wall?
No. Writing, scratching or damaging the mirror wall is a criminal offence under Sri Lanka's antiquities law, and visitors have been arrested for it in recent years. Touching the surface is also prohibited.
Who translated the Sigiriya graffiti?
Senarath Paranavithana, a leading Sri Lankan archaeologist and epigraphist, whose two-volume study Sigiri Graffiti, published in 1956, edited and translated 685 verses. Scholars have recorded many more since. His translations remain the standard starting point for reading the wall.
Where is the mirror wall at Sigiriya?
The mirror wall runs along the outer edge of the gallery path on the western face of Sigiriya, below the fresco pocket and before the lion's paw terrace. The standard climbing route passes directly beside it.