ABSTRACT
Mantai lies at the heart of the Indian Ocean, at the north-west tip of Sri Lanka (Figure 1). Variously known in the past as Mahatittha, Matota and Mantottam, its exact location is go 57·5~ north by 79° 57·5~ east; more graphically, it is a large mound situated just to the east of the southerly extremity ofAdam's Bridge-a string of islands and underwater reefs which stretchbetween the southern tip ofIndia and Sri Lanka, and which effectively prevents the passage ofany vessel of any size between the two countries. Because ofthis singular fact, for at least a thousand years it became the port and emporium for maritime trade from the Near and Far East, for shipping which did not want to navigate the dangerous waters to the south of the island (Figure 2). For the history of trade and the resulting intercultural contacts between the opposite ends of Asia, from the period of the discovery of the monsoons onwards, it is of paramount importance. It has recently been described, with some accuracy, as potentially one of the most important projects in historical archaeology today (Whitehouse 1991: 218). What follows is a summary of the background to our three seasons of excavation a decade ago, since unhappily curtailed by the continuing civil strife in Sri Lanka. A number of preliminary accounts of the excavation itself have been published, the most recent of which (Carswell 1991) details a number of the more significant finds.
