Sri Lanka UNESCO Sites

Sri Lanka UNESCO Cultural Sites

Sri Lanka UNESCO Sites list currently stands at 6 cultural and 2 natural sites. The 6 cultural entries are predictable and logical and include the ancient city sites of Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura, the cave temples at Dambulla and the rock fortress of Sigiriya with the historic towns of Galle and Kandy completing the compliment.

Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura in the north-central part of the island, is considered to be one of the longest, continually occupied cities in the world. According to historical records, the city was founded sometime between the 5th and 3rd centuries BCE, although archaeologists have dated certain remains to as far back as the 10th century BCE. The date of Anuradhapura’s fall is more precisely known and, after existing as a largely independent religious and political capital for an astonishing 1,500 years, was finally destroyed by the army of the Chola kingdom of southern India in 993 CE.

Slightly more off-the-beaten-track than the subsequent listings, Anuradhapura sees significantly fewer visitors than Polonnaruwa or Sigiriya.

Polonnaruwa

The Chola king established a new capital at Polonnaruwa to the southeast, which became an independent chiefdom after the defeat and removal of the Cholas in 1070. Between them, these 2 sites then cover some 2 millennia of history. They’ve been listed by UNESCO since 1982 and today the collections of ruined palaces, stupas and temples – set in picturesque parkland – are exceptional sites for visitors to explore. Though extensive, they lend themselves perfectly to bicycle tours and the lush vegetation, plentiful birdlife and resident leaf monkeys are just the icing on the historical cake.

Sigiriya

Also listed in 1982 and lying slightly to the west, (the area is predictably known as the Cultural Triangle), is the iconic 5th-century site of Sigiriya. The ruins of a combined fortress, citadel and palace lie atop a sheer-sided, mesa-style rock formation while remarkably well-preserved rock paintings – the famous Maidens of the Clouds – can be found on the cliffs. Further remains, as well as terraces, water and boulder gardens, cluster around the rock’s base. A truly spectacular sight.

Dambulla

Also in the Cultural Triangle, just a short hop further west, are the spectacular cave temples of Dambulla. The walls and ceilings of these shallow caves are covered with wall paintings and lined with statues and are said to have been in use for over 2,000 years.

Kandy

Sri Lanka is extremely fortunate to have so many fabulous sites in such a small area and the next site on the list, Kandy, is just a couple of hours’ drive south from here. The mountain city represents a later period of the country’s history, having been founded in the 14th century. It remained the capital of an independent kingdom, resisting both Portuguese and Dutch efforts at conquest until finally falling to the British in 1815. (A good year for the British army!) The town is home to the celebrated and highly prestigious Temple of the Tooth, which seems to be UNESCO’s main criterion for listing it, although the remaining colonial-period buildings of the town centre and lake area also merit some TLC. (The temple, of course, is thought to contain a tooth of the great man himself.)

Galle

Moving on, geographically and historically, picturesque Galle, initially founded by the Portuguese in the 16th century, displays the influence of Moorish/Arab traders as well as Dutch and British colonists. Consisting of a walled city constructed on a rocky promontory, UNESCO considers Galle to be the best example of a European fortified town in Asia.

Sri Lanka UNESCO Natural Sites

A fantastic array of cultural sites, although once again, Sri Lanka’s natural listings are sadly more limited. These currently stand at the Sinharaja Forest Reserve – an area of primary tropical rainforest on the southern edge of the Hill Country – and the Central Highlands which combines the  3 widely-spaced protected areas of Horton Plains, Peak Wilderness and Knuckles Conservation Forest. 2 vitally important biodiversity hotspots and essential listings but, we feel, considering all the other natural candidates on offer, a bit limited in scope.

Sri Lanka UNESCO Sites – Tentative List

While the Sri Lanka World Heritage list represents an admirable start, we can’t help but feel that UNESCO’s tentative list is a very unambitious affair. Most of the above sites have been listed for some time so not surprisingly, the 3 tentative sites are all to be found in the northeastern area, which was off-limits during the recent civil war. These are the Seruwila Mangala Raja Maha Vihara – a 2nd-century stupa and associated structures near Trincomalee – plus an adjacent Seruwali pilgrimage route, which also seems to include the old port of Trincomalee itself. The 3rd entry, also in the northeast, is another 2nd-century religious site, Ariyakara Viharaya.

As we said, unambitious and much as we like the town of Trinco it’s hardly comparable to Galle. There are myriad pilgrimage routes in Sri Lanka, including the famous Adam’s Peak, while there’s also no shortage of ancient stupas either. It almost seems like a sop to the neglected Tamil-inhabited northeast, in which case perhaps the authorities would do better to emphasise the Tamil heritage of already listed sites such as Anuradhapura. (As is often the case, in Sri Lanka, ancient history is also contemporary politics.)

Not on the List

Everywhere you look in Sri Lanka, there seems to be an ancient temple, ruined city or sacred site and looking at the tentative list, other historical sites such as Ritigala or, particularly, Mihintale might have equal or better claims. Again, if Trincomalee is to be considered, the ancient port of Jaffna might have something to say about it. Following our common UNESCO series theme though, we would once again point to the paucity of natural sites and suggest the addition of a few more national parks could be in order. Minneriya, with its awe-inspiring elephant gathering. Yala West, Udawalawe and the vast Wilpattu spring immediately to mind. All are very fragile areas housing rich and diverse wildlife.

The Elephant Gathering, Minneriya

While some country’s sites are fairly far-flung, the Sri Lanka World Heritage sites are conveniently grouped so our itineraries have no problems including the majority in 2-week time frames without too much travelling. Galle, Kandy, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Dambulla and Horton Plains appear on all our Sri Lanka tours while we swap just swap the beach sections according to season. Our November to April version, Sri Lanka World Heritage, Tangalle on the south coast while our May to October, Island of Serendipity tour, includes Nilaveli and Trincomalee in the northeast.

Sharp-eyed readers may note the one obvious exception, Sinharaja. While we have in the past incorporated it into tailored tours, the Forest Park doesn’t fit quite so conveniently into our 2-week itineraries. Frankly, we were simply running out of days and we felt the site was perhaps better suited to specialised birding and wildlife tours. Otherwise, we’ve got pretty much all bases covered.