Three Sinhalese women

Outdoors on a sloping surface three women: two standing and one squatting. They are Sinhalese women of low caste. They wear a wrap skirt (redda), pleated in the Sinhalese manner and fastened at the waist. Above this a wide Portuguese blouse with a V-neck and long sleeves (hatte). The standing woman on the left wears a cloth around her head, wrapped around her neck and shoulders and hanging down low on her back. She may use it rolled up as a carrying ring. The standing woman in the middle – without a headscarf – wears her hair parted in the middle and combed back, probably pinned up in a bun. The squatting woman on the right has her wrap skirt pulled up to the knees. She also wears a long cloth on her head, shoulders and back. Hanging from the cloth on her back is a carrying ring used to carry heavy loads on the head. Leaf 36 from a sketchbook with 117 leaves.