I took this photograph at Anurathpura in 1979 c.e. not long after a rain. The wet added contrast between the lighter areas that had dried and the still damp recesses of the carving. We can see that some mud was trod onto the Moonstone by visitors to the site that day.

Imagine all the toes curled around these images, step after step, as monks entered the temple. Symbolism communicated through the touch of feet. ‘These halls must be holy, if we transit this wonder to walk in them.’

The temple lies in ruin. The monks are gone. The Moonstone remains.