SRI LANKA ~ Fort Hammenhiel - Jaffna ~

... Great postcard nr8 from the wonderful serie "Unseen Sri Lanka"...  set in a beautiful location... it stands on a rock and is surrounded on all sides by the sea... Fort Hammenhiel is an old restored dutch fort and former prison converted in a boutique hotel by the Sri lankan Navy....a unique place to stay... with as always nice matching stamp... Big Thanks once more Ravindra!! ✿◕ ‿ ◕✿

The Hammenhiel Fort is a small island at the entrance to the Jaffna Lagoon between the islands of Kayts and Karativu.

The fort was built by the Portuguese in the 17thC to guard the entrance of the lagoon of quarried coral and was named Fortaleza Real (Fort Royal). After a 3 month siege, the The Dutch captured the fort in 1658 and renamed it as Hammenhiel (Heel of the Ham) and was rebuilt by them in 1680.  It had been used as a store of gunpowder in nine large dungeons and later as a prison.

Stamp:

Fort Hammenhiel Jaffna
 (Issued 02-12-2016)