Abayagiria (Fortress of Safety) Dagoba, Anuradapura – Sri Lanka

Photographer: Unknown
Medium: Photographic print
Date: 1885

Photograph of the Abhayagiri dagoba at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka, taken by an unknown photographer
in the 1880s. The ancient city of Anuradhapura was founded in about 600 BC and was the capital and
principal religious centre of Sri Lanka for 1500 years, finally supplanted by Polonnaruwa. It now consists
of extensive architectural ruins, including a number of monasteries. The Abhayagiri Vihara is one of four
great monasteries at the site, each centring around a huge stupa or dagoba, the others being the
Mahavihara, the Jetavana Vihara and the Mirisavati Vihara. Each monastery complex includes stupa-
shrines, assembly halls, refectories, pools and bathhouses. The remains of these great dagobas mostly
date from the Later Anuradhapura period of architecture (9th to 10th century AD). A dagoba or stupa is a
dome-shaped structure of brick enclosing a small reliquary chamber which enshrines relics or images of
the Buddha.

By: Pesantha Peiris