Old Colombo Dutch Hospital
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The Old Colombo Dutch Hospital (known as The Dutch Hospital) is considered to be the oldest building in the Colombo Fort area dating back to the Dutch colonial era in Sri Lanka. It is now a heritage building and a shopping and dining precinct.
Dutch Era
Built as a hospital by the Dutch, it has been used for several different purposes, over the years. It is believed to have existed since 1681, as recorded by German Christoper Schweitzer.[1] The Dutch established the Colombo hospital to look after the health of the officers and other staff serving under the Dutch East India Company. The hospital's close proximity to the harbour allowed it to serve Dutch seafarers.[2]
Most patients were provided with a mat, while the most ill were given a mattress. Patients clothing was imported from Java. The surgeon with the longest service at the Colombo hospital was Alleman. Alleman sought to improve conditions at the hospital, including increasing provisions. The most famous of all the surgeons who worked in the Colombo hospital was undoubtedly Paul Hermann, who served from 1672 to 1679. Herman has been described as the father of botany in Sri Lanka.[2]
Paintings from the era show that it once had a canal running along what is now Canal Row lane. This canal was filled in by British colonists after their capture of the city.[2]
Post Independence
The building was the Colombo Fort Police Station from the early 1980s to 1990s, prior to which it housed the Colombo Apothecaries. It suffered heavy damage in the LTTE attack that followed the Central Bank bombing in 1996.[citation needed]
In 2011, it has been transformed into a shopping and dining precinct, where the historic architecture has been preserved.[1]
