Constructed by Prince Saliya, son of King Dutugemunu (161-131 BC) in 140 BC, Mahavilachchiya Wewa lies on the northeast border of Wilpattu National Park. This irrigation reservoir has been built by damming the Thalawa Oya which is a tributary of Modaragam Oya. Historical records state that King Dhatusena (459-477) had extended the Jayaganga Canal to feed Mahavilachchiya Wewa with the excess water from Kalawewa in addition to the water flowing on the Thalawa Oya. Identified in ancient texts as “Mayetti Wapi” , King Udaya (797-801) is recorded to have expanded this reservoir further.
Based on a plaque installed during a renovation in 1955, this irrigation reservoir has a capacity of 32,500 acre feet (40 Mn cubic meters) of water and covers approximately 10.5 km2 of land when full. Based on the same plaque, the reservoir supports over 2500 acres of paddy land. The water is supplied to the farmland on over 2 canals on the left and the right banks. The left bank canal is 5km long and the right bank canal is 13.5 km long. The ancient embankment is almost 2.5 km long and both slice gates are about 3.5 feet wide.
The Mahavilachchiya Wewa lies about 1 kilometre away from the Vilachchiya Town.
References
- Soysa. (2015). ශ්රී ලංකාවේ ඉපැරිණි වැව් සහ වාරි කර්මාන්ත (1st ed.) [Print].
Also See
- Hydro Heritage of Sri Lanka
- Ancient Heritage Sites of Sri Lanka
- Other Places of Interest Within Close Proximity
Map of the Mahavilachchiya Wewa
The map above also shows other places of interest within a approximately 20 km radius of the current site. Click on any of the markers and the info box to take you to information of these sites
Zoom out the map to see more surrounding locations using the mouse scroll wheel or map controls.
Travelling to Mahavilachchiya Wewa
Route from Colombo to Mahavilachchiya Wewa |
Through : Puttlam Distance : 222 km Travel time : 5-6 hours Driving directions : see on google map |