Kaduru

Ambalangoda has many museums to visit. The town is renowned for the manufacture of wooden masks and puppets. The traditional masks are carved from light Balsa-like Kaduru wood. The wood is smoke dried for a week in preparation. The hand-carved and hand-painted masks in traditional dance dramas are vibrant and colourful. Masks are created for three different types of dancing rituals: 'Kolam', which tell mocking stories of traditional Sri Lankan colonial life; 'Sanni', or devil dancing masks, used in a type of exorcism ceremony to heal people of persisting illnesses believed to be inflicted by demons; and 'Raksha' masks, which are used in festivals and processions. Local puppet shows, showing dramas, comedies and folk tales were also a popular form of entertainment. Influences from South India, Asia and Europe are assumed to have been the shaping factor in the art of mask dancing and puppetry.