Photo Gallery

The image of women ‘chatting’ in the streets of Colombo, Sri Lanka's bustling metropolis, is an integral part of everyday city life. Especially in busy neighbourhoods such as Pettah or at the markets of Colombo, you will encounter women in colourful saris or shalwar kameez exchanging news while shopping or standing in front of their homes. – 1990

Shop sign in Kandy, Sri Lanka, bearing the inscription “Golden Tea Store”, advertising various agricultural products such as tea, coffee, cocoa and spices. The sign features text in three languages: Sinhala, Tamil and English. This is typical of the linguistic diversity in Sri Lanka. – 1990

An elderly woman in traditional dress, photographed at the market in Kandy – 1990

In Ella, in the Badulla district of Sri Lanka, tea plantations stretch across dozens of square kilometres. Tea is one of the country's most important exports. Its cultivation was introduced by the British, who ruled the island between 1782 and 1948. Ceylon tea is rightly famous worldwide. The fresh shoots are harvested in the morning before the intense heat of the day sets in. Nevertheless, the work is hard and is mainly done by Tamil women. Most Tamils in Sri Lanka come from southern India; their ancestors were brought to the island by the British to establish the tea plantations. - 1990

The Tamil women from Ella return to the village after the tea harvest, their hats (back baskets) worn with headbands filled to the brim. During the harvest, the women place the long pole horizontally on the tea bush as a measuring stick: the young shoots and leaves that protrude above it are picked. - 1990

Street scene in Negombo, north of Colombo. In villages and sometimes even in larger towns in Sri Lanka, ox carts were long the preferred means of transport, used to carry both people and goods. – 1990

Street scene in Negombo, north of Colombo. In villages and sometimes even in larger towns in Sri Lanka, ox carts were long the preferred means of transport, used to carry both people and goods. – 1990

At the large fish market in Negombo, known as Lellama, a vendor offers fresh fish for sale. – 1990

Two women dressed in traditional saris walking down a street in Galle. The sari is a traditional wrap-around garment, often made of cotton or silk and worn in a variety of colours and patterns. – 1990