SRI LANKA ~Budha statue-Maligawila ~

A wonderful example of Sri lankan heritage...a magnificent Budha... Thanks a lot Ravindra!



With lovely colorful stamps.

The Maligawila Buddha statue is a standing figure of the Buddha, which has been carved during the 7th century by a prince named Aggabodhi. 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 Premadasa.

 It is 11 meters tall and is made out of a single block of limestone. It is the tallest free-standing ancient statue of the Buddha found in the country.

 Maligawila is a small village approximately 250km from Colombo. The statue was part of a larger complex which also included a large statue thought to be of the Avalokitheswara Bodhisatva and a gedi ge (A Buddhist shrine).


Photo Juergen Schreiber @Lasantha Lakmal