Must see attractions in Anuradhapura

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Dating back to the 1st century BC, this colossal dagoba was the ceremonial focus of the 5000-strong Abhayagiri Monastery. Originally over 100m high, it…

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This magnificent white dagoba is guarded by a wall with a frieze of 344 elephants standing shoulder to shoulder. Apart from a few beside the western…

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The sacred bodhi tree is central to Anuradhapura in both a spiritual and physical sense. It was grown from a cutting brought from Bodhgaya in India and is…

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The Jetavanarama Dagoba’s massive dome rises above the entire eastern part of Anuradhapura. Built in the 3rd century by King Mahasena, it may have…

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The old British colonial administration building has recently been renovated and has an interesting collection of artwork, carvings and everyday items…

The ruins of Anuradhapura are one of South Asia’s most evocative sights. The sprawling complex contains a rich collection of archaeological and…

This charming rock temple, dating from the reign of Devanampiya Tissa (r 307–267 BC), is set around a lovely lotus pond, the corner of which is carved…

Most of the 8th-century Ratnaprasada or 'Jewel Palace' lies in ruins today, though it was originally seven storeys high with a graceful, tiered roof. The…

Two thousand years after the first of the great dagobas was constructed, a huge new stupa, the Sandahiru Seya, is rising on the south side of Anuradhapura…

In a beautiful woodland setting north of the Ruvanvelisaya Dagoba, the Thuparama Dagoba is the oldest dagoba in Sri Lanka – indeed, probably the oldest…

Known as the Park of the Goldfish, these extensive 2000-year-old royal pleasure gardens cover 14 hectares and contain two ponds skilfully designed to fit…

These swimming-pool-like ponds were likely used by monks from nearby Kaparamula residence hall. Water entered the larger pond through the mouth of a…

A 1937 British colonial building provides a suitably regal venue for some of the treasures found at Jetavanarama. The objects displayed here range from…

Sitting northwest of the Abhayagiri Dagoba, this ruined 9th-century residential complex for monks is notable for having the finest carved moonstone in Sri…

This huge dagoba was the first built by King Dutugemunu after he recaptured the city in the 2nd century BC. The story goes that Dutugemunu went to bathe…

This museum, south of the Abhayagiri Dagoba, is arguably the most interesting in Anuradhapura and contains a collection of squatting plates, jewellery,…

Surrounded by forest, this huge body of water is thought to have acted as an ancient water storage tank for the Abhayagiri monastery rather than as a pool…

This 4th-century statue, seated in the samadhi (meditation) pose, is regarded as one of the finest Buddha statues in Sri Lanka. When constructed, it was…

This mula, or college, housed the bulk of Anuradhapura's many foreign monks and it was probably here that Chinese pilgrim Fa Xian spent two years studying…

To the southwest of the Abhayagiri Dagoba this small site has a 19m-long stone batnava (or rice canoe) that would have been filled daily with cooked rice…