Yatala Vehera (also spelled Yatala Wehera) is an ancient Buddhist stupa located in Deberawewa - Thissamaharama area in Hambantota District of Sri Lanka. The stupa is built on a stage made of large flat granite stones and has a surrounding wall of sculpted elephant heads, a moat and a large moonstone. It is believed that the stupa was built 2300 years ago by regional king Yatala Thissa of Ruhuna to commemorate the place where he was born. However some believe that the stupa was built by...


Built : King Mahanaga,

Thuparamaya is an ancient Buddhist temple in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. Located in the sacred area of Mahamewna park, the Thuparamaya Stupa is the earliest Dagoba to be constructed in the island, dating back to the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa (247-207 BC). The temple has been formally recognised by the Government as an archaeological site in Sri...


Built : King Devanampiya Tissa,
Some Construction : King Lanja Tissa,
Some Construction : King Vasabha,
Some Construction : King Gotabhaya,
Some Construction : King Dhathusena,
Some Construction : King Aggabodhi II,
Some Construction : King Datopathissa,
Some Construction : King Datopathissa II,
Some Construction : King Kassapa II,
Some Construction : King Manavamma,
Some Construction : King Aggabodhi VI,
Some Construction : King Mahinda II,
Some Construction : King Dappula II,
Some Construction : King Sena I,

Yoda Ela (Giant Canal) or Jaya Ganga, an 87 km (54 mi) long single banking water canal carrying excess water from Kala Wewa reservoir to Thissa Wewa reservoir in Anuradhapura. The Yodha Ela is known for achieving a rather low gradient for its time. The gradient is about 10 centimetres per kilometre or 6 inches per...


Built : King Dhathusena,

Giritale tank (Sinhalese: ගිරිතලේ වැව) is a reservoir in Giritale and Minneriya. It was built by King Agbo II (608-618). It is believed that the tank was renovated by King Parakramabahu, the Great (1153–1186).Later, it was subjected to renovation in 1905, 1942 and 1952 during colonial era.

Giritale Tank was considered as the deepest tank in Sri Lanka during the rule of medieval capital...


Built : King Aggabodhi II,

Parākramabāhu I (Pali Mahā Parākaramabāhu 1123–1186) was king of the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa from 1153-86. During his reign from the capital city of Polonnaruwa, he unified the three lesser kingdoms of the island, becoming one of the last monarchs in Sri Lankan history to do so. He oversaw the expansion and beautification of his capital, constructed extensive irrigation systems, reorganized the country's army, reformed Buddhist practices, encouraged the arts and undertook...


Built : King Parakramabahu I,

One of the best specimen of bathing tanks or pools in ancient Sri Lanka is the pair of pools known as Kuttam Pokuna (Twin Ponds/Pools). The said pair of pools were built by the Sinhalese in the ancient kingdom of Anuradhapura. These are considered one of the significant achievements in the field of hydrological engineering and outstanding architectural and artistic creations of the ancient Sinhalese.

Dimensions


Built : King Aggabodhi I,

Nissanka Latha Mandapaya (Sinhala: නිශ්ශංක ලතා මණ්ඩපය) is a unique structure in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka. A màndapa is a pillared structure that is open on all sides and protects the persons inside from the sun with a roof. As of the 20th Cent. mándapas, as temporary structures, are built inside a house or a building and serve as recitation platform during remembrance ceremonies for the dead.

Built by King...


Built : King Nissanka Malla,

Rankoth Vehera is a stupa located in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka. The stupa was built by Nissanka Malla of Polonnaruwa, who ruled the country from 1187 to 1196. The Rankoth Vehera has been built according to the tradition of the stupas of the Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya and bears a close resemblance to Ruwanwelisaya. In fact, a stone inscription situated close to the stupa even identifies it by the name "Ruwanweli". However, it has later come to be known by the...


Built : King Nissanka Malla,

The Maligawila Buddha statue is a standing figure of the Buddha in Sri Lanka, which has been carved out of a large limestone rock during the 7th century by a prince named Aggabodhi. It is the tallest free-standing ancient statue of the Buddha found in the country. It had been broken into several pieces by the time it was found in 1951. The statue was reconstructed and raised again in 1980 under the direction of the then president Ranasinghe...

The Samadhi Statue is a statue situated at Mahamevnāwa Park in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. The Buddha is depicted in the position of the Dhyana Mudra, the posture of meditation associated with his first Enlightenment. Whether the Buddha's Enlightenment was the experience technically called samadhi, or some other phenomenon, may depend upon the philosophical allegiance of the believer. In the Dhyana Mudra the Buddha sits cross-legged with his upturned palms placed one over the other on...

The Avukana statue is a standing statue of the Buddha near Kekirawa in North Central Sri Lanka. The statue, which has a height of more than 40 feet (12 m), was carved out of a large granite rock face during the 5th century. It depicts a variation of the Abhaya mudra, and the closely worn robe is elaborately carved. Constructed during the reign of Dhatusena, it may have been made as a result of a competition between a master and a pupil. The Avukana statue is one of the best examples of a...


Built : King Dhathusena,

Kala Wewa, built by the King Datusena in 307 B.C, is a twin reservoir complex (Kala Wewa & Balalu Wewa) which has a capacity of 123 million cubic meters. This reservoir complex has facilitated with a stone made spillway and three main sluices. From the central major sluice, a 40 feet wide central conveys water to feed thousands of acres of paddy lands and ends at the historical capital Anuradhapura city tank Tissa Wewa meandering over 87 km (54 mi) at a slope of 6 inches per mile and...


Built : King Dhathusena,

Hatadage (Sinhala: හැටදාගේ) is an ancient relic shrine in the city of Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka. It was built by King Nissanka Malla, and had been used to keep the Relic of the tooth of the Buddha. The Hatadage had been built using stone, brick and wood, although only parts of the brick and stone walls now remain. It appears to have been a two-storey structure, but the upper storey has now been destroyed. Three Buddha statues carved out of granite rock are located within a...


Built : King Nissanka Malla,

The Polonnaruwa Vatadage is an ancient structure dating back to the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa of Sri Lanka. It is believed to have been built during the reign of Parakramabahu I to hold the Relic of the tooth of the Buddha or during the reign of Nissanka Malla of Polonnaruwa to hold the alms bowl used by the Buddha. Both these venerated relics would have given the structure a great significance and importance at the time. Located within the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, it is the best...


Built : King Parakramabahu I,

Valagamba (Sinhala: වළගම්බා), also known as Wattagamani Abhaya[1] and Valagambahu, was a king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom of Sri Lanka. Five months after becoming king, he was overthrown by a rebellion and an invasion from South India, but regained the throne by defeating the invaders fourteen years later. He is also known for the construction of the Abhayagiri...


Built : King Walagamba,

Sigiriya or Sinhagiri (Lion Rock Sinhalese: සීගිරිය, Tamil: சிகிரியா, pronounced see-gi-ri-yə) is an ancient rock fortress located in the northern Matale District near the town of Dambulla in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. The name refers to a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 200 metres (660 ft) high. According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle the Culavamsa, this site was selected by...


Built : King Kassapa I,