Sei sulla pagina 1di 7

Untitled

Sigiriya
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article appears to be written like an advertisement. Please help improve it by
rewriting promotional content from a neutral point of view and removing any
inappropriate external links. (March 2013)
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List
Sigiriya Rock from the main public entrance
Country Sri Lanka
Type Cultural
Criteria ii, iii, iv
Reference 202
UNESCO region Asia-Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription 1982 (6th Session)
Sigiriya is located in Sri Lanka
Location of Sigiriya in Sri Lanka.
cc6, Sigiriya (Lion Rock, Sinhala: pronounced see-gee-REE-yah) is located in the
central Matale District of the Central Province, Sri Lanka in an area dominated by a
massive column of rock nearly 200 meters high. According to the ancient Sri Lankan
chronicle the Culavamsa the site was selected by King Kasyapa (477 495 AD) for his
new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides
with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock
he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is
derived from this structure Shgiri, the Lion Rock. The capital and the royal
palace were abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery
until the 14th century.[1]
Sigiriya today is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site. It is one of the best
preserved examples of ancient urban planning.[2] It is the most visited historic
site in Sri Lanka.[3]
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Archaeological remains and features
2.1 Site plan
3 Frescoes
4 The Mirror Wall
5 The gardens
5.1 The water gardens
5.2 The boulder gardens
5.3 The terraced gardens
6 Image gallery
7 Other
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
History[edit]
Environment around the Sigiriya may have been inhabited since prehistoric times.
There is clear evidence that the many rock shelters and caves in the vicinity were
occupied by Buddhist monks and ascetics from as early as the 3rd century BC.
In AD477, prince Kashyapa seized the throne from King Dhatusena, following a coup
assisted by Migara, the kings nephew and army commander. Kashyapa, the kings son
by a non-royal consort, usurped the throne from the rightful heir, Moggallana, who
fled to South India. Fearing an attack from Moggallana, Kashyapa moved the capital
and his residence from the traditional capital of Anuradhapura to the more secure
Sigiriya. During King Kashyapas reign (477 to 495), Sigiriya was developed into a
complex city and fortress.[citation needed] Most of the elaborate constructions on
the rock summit and around it, including defensive structures, palaces, and gardens,
date back to this period.
Page 1
Untitled
Kashyapa was defeated in 495 by Moggallana, who moved the capital again to
Anuradhapura. Sigiriya was then turned into a Buddhist monastery, which lasted until
the 13th or 14th century. After this period, no records are found on Sigiriya until
the 16th and 17th centuries, when it was used briefly as an outpost of the Kingdom
of Kandy.
The Culavamsa describes King Kashyapa as the son of King Dhatusena. Kashyapa
murdered his father by walling him up alive and then usurping the throne which
rightfully belonged to his brother Mogallana, Dhatusena's son by the true queen.
Mogallana fled to India to escape being assassinated by Kashyapa but vowed revenge.
In India he raised an army with the intention of returning and retaking the throne
of Sri Lanka which he considered to be rightfully his. Knowing the inevitable return
of Mogallana, Kashyapa is said to have built his palace on the summit of Sigiriya as
a fortress and pleasure palace. Mogallana finally arrived and declared war. During
the battle Kashyapa's armies abandoned him and he committed suicide by falling on
his sword.
Chronicles and lore say that the battle-elephant on which Kashyapa was mounted
changed course to take a strategic advantage, but the army misinterpreted the
movement as the King having opted to retreat, prompting the army to abandon the king
altogether. It is said that being too proud to surrender he took his dagger from his
waistband, cut his throat, raised the dagger proudly, sheathed it, and fell dead.
Moggallana returned the capital to Anuradapura, converting Sigiriya into a monastery
complex.[4]
Alternative stories have the primary builder of Sigiriya as King Dhatusena, with
Kashyapa finishing the work in honour of his father. Still other stories have
Kashyapa as a playboy king, with Sigiriya a pleasure palace. Even Kashyapa's
eventual fate is uncertain. In some versions he is assassinated by poison
administered by a concubine; in others he cuts his own throat when isolated in his
final battle.[5] Still further interpretations have the site as the work of a
Buddhist community, with no military function at all. This site may have been
important in the competition between the Mahayana and Theravada Buddhist traditions
in ancient Sri Lanka.
The earliest evidence of human habitation at Sigiriya was found from the Aligala
rock shelter to the east of Sigiriya rock, indicating that the area was occupied
nearly five thousand years ago during the Mesolithic Period.
Buddhist monastic settlements were established in the western and northern slopes of
the boulder-strewn hills surrounding the Sigiriya rock, during the 3rd century BC.
Several rock shelters or caves were created during this period. These shelters were
made under large boulders, with carved drip ledges around the cave mouths. Rock
inscriptions are carved near the drip ledges on many of the shelters, recording the
donation of the shelters to the Buddhist monastic order as residences. These were
made within the period between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD.
Archaeological remains and features[edit]
The Lion Gate and Final Climbing Stretch
In 1831 Major Jonathan Forbes of the 78th Highlanders of the British army, while
returning on horseback from a trip to Pollonnuruwa, came across the "bush covered
summit of Sigiriya".[6] Sigiriya came to the attention of antiquarians and, later,
archaeologists. Archaeological work at Sigiriya began on a small scale in the 1890s.
H.C.P. Bell was the first archaeologist to conduct extensive research on Sigiriya.
The Cultural Triangle Project, launched by the Government of Sri Lanka, focused its
attention on Sigiriya in 1982. Archaeological work began on the entire city for the
first time under this project. There was a sculpted lion's head above the legs and
paws flanking the entrance, but the head broke down many years ago.
Sigiriya consists of an ancient castle built by King Kashyapa during the 5th
century. The Sigiriya site has the remains of an upper palace sited on the flat top
of the rock, a mid-level terrace that includes the Lion Gate and the mirror wall
with its frescoes, the lower palace that clings to the slopes below the rock, and
the moats, walls, and gardens that extend for some hundreds of metres out from the
base of the rock.
The site is both a palace and a fortress. Despite its age, the splendour of the
palace still furnishes a stunning insight into the ingenuity and creativity of its
Page 2
Untitled
builders. The upper palace on the top of the rock includes cisterns cut into the
rock that still retain water. The moats and walls that surround the lower palace are
still exquisitely beautiful.[7]
Close up of the Lions Paw
Site plan[edit]
Sigiriya is considered one of the most important urban planning sites of the first
millennium, and the site plan is considered very elaborate and imaginative. The plan
combined concepts of symmetry and asymmetry to intentionally interlock the man-made
geometrical and natural forms of the surroundings. On the west side of the rock lies
a park for the royals, laid out on a symmetrical plan; the park contains
water-retaining structures, including sophisticated surface/subsurface hydraulic
systems, some of which are working even today. The south contains a man-made
reservoir; these were extensively used from the previous capital of the dry zone of
Sri Lanka. Five gates were placed at entrances. The more elaborate western gate is
thought to have been reserved for the royals.[8][9][10]
Frescoes[edit]
John Still in 1907 suggested, "The whole face of the hill appears to have been a
gigantic picture gallery... the largest picture in the world perhaps".[11] The
paintings would have covered most of the western face of the rock, covering an area
140 metres long and 40 metres high. There are references in the graffiti to 500
ladies in these paintings. However, many more are lost forever, having been wiped
out when the Palace once more became a monastery so that they would not disturb
meditation.[citation needed] Some more frescoes, different from the popular
collection, can be seen elsewhere on the rock surface, for example on the surface of
the location called the "Cobra Hood Cave".
Although the frescoes are classified as in the Anuradhapura period, the painting
style is considered unique;[citation needed] the line and style of application of
the paintings differing from Anuradhapura paintings. The lines are painted in a form
which enhances the sense of volume of the figures. The paint has been applied in
sweeping strokes, using more pressure on one side, giving the effect of a deeper
colour tone towards the edge. Other paintings of the Anuradhapura period contain
similar approaches to painting, but do not have the sketchy lines of the Sigiriya
style, having a distinct artists' boundary line. The true identity of the ladies in
these paintings still have not been confirmed. There are various ideas about their
identity. Some believe that they are the wives of the king while some think that
they are women taking part in religious observances. These pictures have a close
resemblance to some of the paintings seen in the Ajanta caves in India
The frescoes, depicting beautiful female figures in graceful contour or colour,
point to the direction of the Kandy temple, sacred to the Sinhalese.[12]
Sigiriya fresco sacred.jpg

Sigiri Frescos 1.JPG

Sigiriya ladies.jpg

Sigiri Frescos.jpg
The Mirror Wall[edit]
The Mirror Wall and spiral stairs leading to the frescoes
Originally this wall was so well polished that the king could see himself whilst he
walked alongside it. Made of a kind of porcelain, the wall is now partially covered
with verses scribbled by visitors to the rock. Well preserved, the mirror wall has
verses dating from the 8th century. People of all types wrote on the wall, on
varying subjects such as love, irony, and experiences of all sorts. Further writing
on the mirror wall now has been banned for the protection of old writings of the
wall.
One such poem in Sinhala is:
":. c :. cc6 :. _ _ c _u :."
Page 3
Untitled
The rough translation is: "I am Budal [the writer's name]. (I) Came alone to see
Sigiriya. Since all the others wrote poems, I did not!" He has left an important
record that Sigiriya was visited by people beginning a very long time ago.
The gardens[edit]
The Gardens of the Sigiriya city are one of the most important aspects of the site,
as it is among the oldest landscaped gardens in the world. The gardens are divided
into three distinct but linked forms: water gardens, cave and boulder gardens, and
terraced gardens.
The water gardens[edit]
A pool in the garden complex
The water gardens can be seen in the central section of the western precinct. Three
principal gardens are found here. The first garden consists of a plot surrounded by
water. It is connected to the main precinct using four causeways, with gateways
placed at the head of each causeway. This garden is built according to an ancient
garden form known as char bagh, and is one of the oldest surviving models of this
form.
The second contains two long, deep pools set on either side of the path. Two
shallow, serpentine streams lead to these pools. Fountains made of circular
limestone plates are placed here. Underground water conduits supply water to these
fountains which are still functional, especially during the rainy season. Two large
islands are located on either side of the second water garden. Summer palaces are
built on the flattened surfaces of these islands. Two more islands are located
farther to the north and the south. These islands are built in a manner similar to
the island in the first water garden.
The gardens of Sigiriya, as seen from the summit of the Sigiriya rock
The third garden is situated on a higher level than the other two. It contains a
large, octagonal pool with a raised podium on its northeast corner. The large brick
and stone wall of the citadel is on the eastern edge of this garden.
The water gardens are built symmetrically on an east-west axis. They are connected
with the outer moat on the west and the large artificial lake to the south of the
Sigiriya rock. All the pools are also interlinked using an underground conduit
network fed by the lake, and connected to the moats. A miniature water garden is
located to the west of the first water garden, consisting of several small pools and
watercourses. This recently discovered smaller garden appears to have been built
after the Kashyapan period, possibly between the 10th and 13th centuries.
The boulder gardens[edit]
The boulder gardens consist of several large boulders linked by winding pathways.
The gardens extend from the northern slopes to the southern slopes of the hills at
the foot of Sigiris rock. Most of these boulders had a building or pavilion upon
them; there are cuttings that were used as footings for brick walls and beams.it is
a vital component of the spite.
The terraced gardens[edit]
The terraced gardens are formed from the natural hill at the base of the Sigiriya
rock. A series of terraces rises from the pathways of the boulder garden to the
staircases on the rock. These have been created by the construction of brick walls,
and are located in a roughly concentric plan around the rock. The path through the
terraced gardens is formed by a limestone staircase. From this staircase, there is a
covered path on the side of the rock, leading to the uppermost terrace where the
lion staircase is situated.
Image gallery[edit]
View of the moat

View of one of the pools in the garden complex
Page 4
Untitled

The Sigiriya Rock seen from the Fountain Gardens

Rock shelters at the foot of the Sigiriya rock

A partially man-made shelter with brick walls, using a large boulder as the roof

Ruins of the Lion's mouth

Remains of the indents in the rock where the stairway to the top was built

Towards the Mirror Wall

The terrace below the mirror wall

View from the side of the Mirror wall

Summit ruins

View over the gardens from the summit

Summit ruins
Other[edit]
The video for the 1982 single Save a Prayer by Duran Duran was filmed primarily at
Sigiriya.[13]
Sigiriya is used as the location of many of the events in the science-fiction novel
The Fountains of Paradise by Arthur C. Clarke, although Clarke changed the name to
Yakkagala ("Demon Rock") in the book.
See also[edit]
More about Sigiriya
Place names in Sri Lanka
Tourism in Sri Lanka
List of colossal sculpture in situ
References[edit]
^ Ponnamperuma, Senani (2013). The Story of Sigiriya. Panique Pty Ltd. ISBN
9780987345110.
^ Bandaranayake, Senake (2005). Sigiirya City Palace Gardens Monasteries Painting.
Central Cultural Fund. ISBN 9556311469 Check |isbn= value (help).
Page 5
Untitled
^ 2011 Research & International Relations Division Sri Lanka Tourism Development
Authority Annual Statistical Report. Colombo: Research & International Relations
Division. 2011. p. 58.
^ Geiger, Wilhelm. Culavamsa Being The More Recent Part Of Mahavamsa 2 Vols, Ch 39.
1929
^ "The Sigiriya Story". Asian Tribune. Retrieved 2006-11-24.
^ Forbes, Jonathan. Eleven Years in Ceylon. London: Richard Benley, 1841.
^ "Sri Lanka: Slip Into Antiquity". The Epoch Times. Retrieved 2005-05-04.
^ "Sigiriya - The fortress in the sky". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 2004-10-10.
^ "Sigiriya". BuddhaNet. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
^ "Sigiriya: the most spectacular site in South Asia". Sunday Observer. Retrieved
2006-08-03.
r ^ Senake Bandaranayake and Madhyama Sa sk tika Aramudala. Sigriya. 2005, page 38
^ Buddhist Art Frontline Magazine May 1326, 1989
^ Ponnamperuma, Senani. "About Sigiriya". The Story of Sigiriya. Panique Pty Ltd.
Retrieved 9 March 2013.
Further reading[edit]
Sigiriya", Sigiriya in Sri Lanka
The Story of Sigiriya, by Senani Ponnamperuma (ISBN 978-0987345110; ISBN
978-0987345141;).
Sigiriya, by Senake Bandaranayake (ISBN 978-9556131116).
Story of Sigiriya, by Professor Senerath Paranavitana.
"The Mystique of Sigiriya: Whispers of the Mirror Wall". Sunday Observer. Retrieved
2008-02-10.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sigiriya.
Sigiriya Location, Sri Lanka
Official UNESCO website entry
The Sigiriya Museum
Department of Archaeology Sri Lanka
Mount of Remembrance
[hide] v t e
World Heritage Sites in Sri Lanka
Anuradhapura Central Highlands Galle and its Fortifications Golden Temple of
Dambulla Kandy Polonnaruwa Sigiriya Sinharaja Forest Reserve
Flag of Sri Lanka
Coordinates: 757 25 N 8045 35 E
Categories: World Heritage Sites in Sri LankaArchaeological sites in Sri
LankaHistory of Sri LankaVolcanoes of Sri LankaVolcanic plugsForts in Sri
LankaPalaces in Sri LankaRock formationsKingdom of KandyMatale DistrictTerraced
gardens
Navigation menu
Create accountLog inArticleTalkReadEditView history
Search
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
Print/export
Languages

Bosanski
Page 6
Untitled
etina
Deutsch
Espaol
Franais

Bahasa Indonesia
Italiano

Lietuvi

Nederlands

Norsk bokml
Polski
Portugus
Romn

c
Slovenina
Srpskohrvatski /
Svenska

Ti ng Vi t

Edit links
This page was last modified on 12 November 2013 at 17:14.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;
additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and
Privacy Policy.
Wikipedia is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit
organization.
Privacy policyAbout WikipediaDisclaimersContact WikipediaDevelopersMobile
viewWikimedia Foundation Powered by MediaWiki
Page 7

Potrebbero piacerti anche