Kekirawa between the Avukana Buddha and Kalawewa

If you are considering Kekirawa as a destination for a hotel stay, nearby cultural and landscape features offer a concrete point of reference. In the surrounding area are the Avukana Buddha statue and Kalawewa, an irrigation work dating from the Anuradhapura Kingdom. The statue invites attention to its form, pedestal and architectural relationship with the rock face; Kalawewa draws attention to two ancient irrigation reservoirs and their recorded history. Sculpture and the history of water engineering thus offer distinct interests side by side.

The Avukana Buddha statue and its architectural setting

The Avukana Buddha statue near Kekirawa is a standing Buddha figure carved from a large granite rock face in the 5th century. A narrow strip of rock connects it to and supports it against the rock face. The lotus pedestal on which the Buddha stands was carved separately and placed beneath it. The figure, its supporting connection to the rock and the pedestal are therefore clearly distinguishable elements of the design.

The pedestal also matters when it comes to the height measurements: without the pedestal, the statue is 38 feet 10 inches (11.84 m) tall; including the pedestal, the total height is 42 feet (13 m). The figures therefore refer to different measurements. When comparing them, you can distinguish the height of the statue itself from the total height of the sculpture.

The setting of the statue also includes the large image house, or shrine, in which it stood. Parts of its walls still remain. A structure made of brick and stone measured 74 feet (23 m) in length and 63 feet (19 m) in width. These dimensions give the architectural setting a scale of its own alongside the statue. For travellers interested in architecture, the former image house is therefore part of the cultural theme, along with the figure and pedestal.

Kalawewa and the history of the irrigation reservoirs

Kalawewa lies 7 km southwest of Kekirawa in the Anuradhapura District and is an irrigation work dating from the Anuradhapura Kingdom. Present-day Kalawewa is considered to be a combination of two ancient irrigation reservoirs: Balaluwewa and Kalawewa. In this context, the name Kalawewa thus refers both to the present-day structure and to one of the two reservoirs. Unlike the statue, whose description focuses on its form and components, the focus here is on the combination of two reservoirs.

The dating of the reservoirs is attributed to the Mahawansha. According to the Mahawansha, Balaluwewa was constructed over the Hawenella Oya during the reign of King Kutakanna Thissa (44–22 BC). Kalawewa, too, was constructed over the Kala Oya during the reign of King Dhathusena (453–477 AD), according to the Mahawansha. The account thus assigns the two reservoirs to different rulers and periods. It also names the watercourse over which each reservoir was constructed.

For your trip planning, this comparison offers two concrete cultural highlights: at Avukana, the focus is on the statue, its measurements and the surviving sections of wall; at Kalawewa, it is on the combination of the reservoirs and their recorded construction history. If you choose Kekirawa for its historic structures, you can distinguish between sculpture and irrigation history without treating both subjects as a single site.

Discover more destinations: Mihintale, Habarana, Anuradhapura, Medawachchiya, Pahala Maragahawewa

Return to the main travel overview: Anuradhapura.