Sigiriya in Sri Lanka

Sigiriya is an ancient rock fortress located within the northern Matale District near the town of Dambulla in Sri Lanka. It is also known as Singhagiri.

The site of the Sigiriya contains, the ruins of an upper palace located on the flat top of the rock, a terrace that includes the Lion Gate and the mirror wall with its frescoes, the lower palaces located behind the lavish lower gardens, and moats and ramparts which protected the citadel.

During King Kashyapa’s reign (477 to 495 CE), Sigiriya was developed into a fancy city and fortress. Most of the frilly constructions on the rock summit and around it, including defensive structures, palaces, and gardens, originate this era.

Special things in Sigiriya

Frescoes

The paintings would have covered most of the western face of the rock, a neighborhood 140 meters long and 40 meters high. There are references within the graffiti to 500 ladies in these paintings. However, most are lost forever.
Other paintings of the Anuradhapura period contain similar approaches to painting, but don't have the sketchy lines of the Sigiriya style, having a definite artists' border.

Although the frescoes are classified as within the Anuradhapura period, the painting style is taken into account unique the road and elegance of the application of the paintings differing from Anuradhapura paintings.

Mirror wall
Made from brick masonry and covered in highly polished white plaster, the wall is now partially covered with verses scribbled by visitors, a number of them dating from as early because of the 8th century.

The Archaeological Commissioner of Ceylon, Senarath Paranavithana, deciphered 685 verses written within the 8th, 9th and 10th centuries CE on the mirror wall.

Gardens

The Gardens of the Sigiriya city are one of the foremost important aspects of the location because it is among the oldest landscaped gardens within the world. The gardens are divided into three distinct but linked forms: water gardens, cave and boulder gardens, and terraced gardens.

There are 3 types of gardens