Polonnaruwa was the island’s capital from the 10th to 13th century, and what remains is unusually compact and legible. The Royal Palace complex, the Sacred Quadrangle and the Gal Vihara, where a 15-metre reclining Buddha and a 7-metre standing Buddha were carved from the same granite rock face, are extraordinary by any standard.
Sigiriya
A 5th-century royal fortress that rewrites your understanding of ancient engineering
The hydraulic water gardens at the base are engineering from the 5th century AD. The frescoes painted onto the sheer rock face have survived 1,500 years. The Mirror Wall is inscribed with devotional poetry spanning a thousand years of visitors. The summit view at first light, across the Cultural Triangle, is everything the photographs suggest and something they cannot capture.
