President on an inspection tour to Sigiriya

President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited the Sigiriya rock fortress this morning (August 23) to inspect the current state of the damage caused to the frescoes.He was accompanied by Minister of Cultural Affairs Pavithra Wanniarachchi and ministry officials.A report on the current state of the frescoes was handed over to President Rajapaksa on August 20.Meanwhile, Dr. Senarath Dissanayake, Director General of Archaeology, says that foreign specialists will be brought in to examine the white stains that have appeared on the Sigiriya frescos. The Director General also said that a team of local specialists have already started inspecting the frescos and is currently running several tests at Sigiriya. It was revealed last week that white spots have appeared on about six paintings of damsels, reportedly a few days after a chemical preservative was injected into them.(News-Colombo Today)