Uncaptioned portrait photograph showing the head and upper torso of Vedda man standing in front of a tree. He is holding two objects in his hand, possibly a bow and arrow.

Vedda are an Indigenous group of Sri Lanka. They are thought to be some of the earliest inhabitants of Sri Lanka with a culture that is distinct from the country’s Sinhalese and Tamil group. Traditionally, they lived in forests and lived by foraging, hunting and fishing. Vedda still live in Sri Lanka today although they comprise less than 1% of the population.

Sri Lanka became a British colony during the nineteenth century, eventually achieving independence in 1948. During British rule, commercial photographers made images of Vedda to sell and this photograph was probably collected as a souvenir.