Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy - Birth Centenary 22.8.1977

Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy (22 August 1877 − 9 September 1947) was a Ceylonese Tamil philosopher and metaphysician, as well as a pioneering historian and philosopher of Indian art, particularly art history and symbolism, and an early interpreter of Indian culture to the West. In particular, he is described as "the groundbreaking theorist who was largely responsible for introducing ancient Indian art to the West."

Ananda Kentish Coomarswamy was born on August 22, 1877 in Colombo, Ceylon, to Sir Muthu Coomarswamy and Elizabeth Clay Beeby. Ananda lost his father when he was only two years old and was brought up by his mother in England. In 1900 he graduated with first-class and honours from the London University. Later he was awarded a Doctorate of Science degre in Geology by the same University. Ananda Coomarswamy worked as Director of Mineralogical Survey of Sri Lanka from 1903 to 1906. Discovery of thorianite, a cubical mineral of high specific gravity is a major contribution of Coomarswamy during this period. Coomarswamy's interests were not, however, confined to science. He was in particular inspired by the history and culture of India and traveled extensively in this country collecting some of the finest specimens of Indian paintings and drawings. In 1917, Dr. Ananda Coomarswamy joined the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, U.S.A. as Keeper for Indian Art and continued there till 1947.

Coomarswamy was a many-sided personality- a linguist, philosopher, art historian and critic. A man of unbounded energy, Coomarswamy did pioneering work in discovering and documenting thousands of works of art. Among his major works are 'Medieval Sinhalese Art', 'The Arts and Crafts of India and Ceylon', 'Essays in National Idealism', 'The Dance of Shiva', 'A New Aproach to the Vedas' and 'Catalogue of Indian Collections in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston' to mention only a few. Coomarswamy died at Needham, Boston in U.S.A. on September 9. 1947.  

The stamp depicts a profile of Ananda Kentish Coomarswamy. Alongside is shown the dancing Shiva, the subject of a well-known study by Coomarswamy. The cover illustration is the ‘Satha Nayaka’ from the Ross-Coomaraswamy collection, courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA.