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CAVES AND CAVERNS

Alawala Pothgul Len Rajamaha Viharaya

අලවල පුරාණ පොත්ගුල් ලෙන් රජමහා විහාරය

WESTERN PROVINCE

GAMPAHA DISTRICT

7°7'43.3"N 80°11'34.1"E

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Three caves across sixty acres, and a reclining Buddha in the largest of them.

STAND INSIDE IT — 360°

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THE PLACE

Three caves across sixty acres — Vihara Lena, Pothgul Lena and Thapo Lena. The first holds a large reclining Buddha of the Kandyan era, and two seated figures, one Anuradhapura and one Kandyan. The murals are good, and were restored about a hundred and fifty years ago.


Pothgul Lena lies up the slope from the temple, and it is the one that matters to archaeologists rather than pilgrims. Human remains have been found in it that are believed to date to around 13,000 BCE.


Fifteen thousand years of people using the same three holes in the same hillside. The Buddha statues are the most recent thing here by a very wide margin.

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PROVINCE

Western Province

DISTRICT

Gampaha District

DS DIVISION

Attanagalla

GN DIVISION

Alawala North

LOCALITY

Alawala

FROM COLOMBO

52 km · 1 h 39 min
59 km · 1 h 35 min by expressway

COORDINATES

7°7'43.3"N 80°11'34.1"E

THE PHOTOGRAPHS

THE PHOTOGRAPHER'S NOTES

- Viran de Silva

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UNIQUE SRI LANKA

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CONTACT

Photographs © Viran de Silva
info@virandesilva.com
uniquesrilanka.com

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