Ancient City Of Polonnaruwa

At Gal Vihara, four Buddha figures are carved directly into a single massive granite outcrop, the largest over 14 metres long. The sculptors worked the stone from 1070 CE under King Parakramabahu the Great, creating the reclining Buddha’s serene face, the standing figure’s precise proportions, and the seated meditating figure with its closed eyes and absolute stillness. You can get close enough to read the chisel marks in the rock. This is medieval Sri Lankan Buddhist art at its absolute peak, and most visitors to Sri Lanka drive past Polonnaruwa to get to Sigiriya instead.

The City

Polonnaruwa was the second capital of Sri Lanka, active from the 11th to 13th centuries CE. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site covering a sprawling royal complex: religious monuments, administrative buildings, reservoirs, and residential areas that together document the sophistication of Sinhalese medieval civilisation.

Renting a bicycle at the entrance is the right approach. The city is spread over several kilometres and the distances between sites make walking impractical in Sri Lanka’s midday heat. Bike rental costs a few hundred rupees; the main circuit takes two to three hours at a reasonable pace.

Gal Vihara is the definitive site. See it at opening time before tour groups arrive. Polonnaruwa Vatadage is a circular structure protecting a small stupa said to contain a relic of the Buddha; the concentric stone walls and the carved guardstones at the entrances are among the finest examples of 12th-century stonework in the country. Rankot Vihara is one of Sri Lanka’s tallest dagobas, a monumental brick stupa with a base circumference of over 550 metres.

Lankathilaka Temple has a standing Buddha that has lost its head and arms to erosion and time; the headless figure in the towering brick shell is oddly more affecting than a complete one would be.

The Parakrama Samudra reservoir, built by Parakramabahu I in the 12th century, is one of the largest ancient irrigation tanks in Sri Lanka; at its fullest it covers 25 square kilometres. It is visible from most of the site and gives context for why a city of this scale could exist in what is now fairly dry countryside.

Getting There

Polonnaruwa is about 215 kilometres from Colombo (four hours by bus or three by train). From Sigiriya it is 60 kilometres, easily combined as a day trip by car or tuk-tuk. The most logical Sri Lanka itinerary threads Colombo, Kandy, Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa, and the Cultural Triangle sites.

Staying and Eating

Habarana, 35 kilometres west, is the main accommodation hub for the Cultural Triangle region. Cinnamon Lodge is the upmarket option with excellent safari access for Minneriya National Park’s famous elephant gatherings. Budget guesthouses in Polonnaruwa town itself are adequate and well-placed for an early start at the archaeological park.