Biso Pokuna At Galabedda | AmazingLanka.com

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The Galabedda Biso Pokuna, or Queen’s Pond, is a masterwork of 12th-century hydraulic engineering located in Monaragala. Primarily associated with the fierce Queen Sugala, the site served as a high-status royal bathing complex. Its sophisticated design features a five-tiered stone structure fed by the Maragala Oya through four artistically carved lion-mouth spouts.

The Galabedda Biso Pokuna, also known as the Queen’s Pond or Galabedda Bisokotuwa, represents one of the most refined examples of ancient Sri Lankan hydraulic engineering and domestic architecture from the Rohana Kingdom.

Situated in the Monaragala District within the Siyambalanduwa Divisional Secretariat, the site illustrates the artistic and technological sophistication achieved during the Polonnaruwa Era. Unlike many ancient ponds in Sri Lanka that served primarily religious or agricultural functions, the Galabedda Biso Pokuna is distinctive for its integration into a high-status residential complex, most likely reserved for royalty (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Origins and Historical Context

The precise origins of the Galabedda Biso Pokuna remain debated among historians and local traditions. The dominant archaeological interpretation assigns its construction to the Polonnaruwa period of the 12th century, noting structural similarities with the Kumara Pokuna (Prince Pond) in Polonnaruwa. However, three principal theories identify different patrons.

Local legend closely associates the pond with Queen Sugalā Devi, the ruler of Udundora, capital of the Atadahas Rata (Attasahassa) region (Dissanayaka, 2025). As sovereign of Ruhuna, she is believed to have used this pond during her reign.

Another theory attributes its construction to King Kavantissa. Inscriptions discovered in the Ampara District at sites such as Kusalakanda and Malayadi Kanda indicate that Prince Kavantissa undertook extensive development works in the Digamadulla region prior to ascending the throne of Ruhuna. Local tradition, supported by present-day custodians, holds that he commissioned the pond while traveling from Digamadulla to Magama (Dissanayaka, 2025; Senadheera, 1965).

A further tradition suggests Prince Saddhatissa, son of Kavantissa, as the builder (Dissanayaka, 2025). Another 12th-century attribution credits Prince Siri Vallabha (1132–1153 CE), who ruled Atadahas Rata, with constructing the pond for his consort, Sugalā Devi (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Folklore and Legends of Area

The surrounding landscape is deeply embedded in myth. The mountain rising behind the pond is known as Maragala Kanda, connected to a chain of hills including Gita Kanda. According to local tradition, Princess Sita of the Ramayana epic was hidden in these mountains during her stay in Lanka, giving rise to the name Sita Kanda (Senadheera, 1965).

The forested environment of Galabedda is also the subject of remarkable legends. It is claimed that wild elephants and bears do not inhabit this woodland. One explanation attributes this to a parasitic creeper called Maha Hadaya, whose petals fall into the Maragala Oya, rendering its waters poisonous to elephants. Elephants that drink from the contaminated stream are said to collapse and die, creating a natural defensive barrier for the royal settlement (Senadheera, 1965).

According to Kimbulagala Pannananda, a monk residing at a forest temple approximately 3.2 kilometers (2 miles) away, another explanation involves resin found on Maragala Kanda and Gita Kanda. As the stream descends, this resin dissolves into the water, producing a toxic effect fatal to wild elephants (Senadheera, 1965).

Legend further asserts that bears avoid the forest due to a plant known as Walass Wendiriyā. Its hair-like leaves are said to be highly poisonous. Even contact or inhalation of its scent is believed to prove lethal to bears, which are said to cry out for two or three days before dying within the forest (Senadheera, 1965).

Architecture and Structural Design

Plan of Galabedda Biso Pokuna
source : Ancient pond technology: Insights from the Galabedda Biso Pokuna (Queen’s Pond), Sri Lanka

The Galabedda Biso Pokuna is constructed upon a solid stone foundation and enclosed by a brick wall measuring 0.69 meters (2 feet 3 inches) in width and 0.91 meters (3 feet) in height. The rectangular pond measures approximately 15 to 18 meters (50 to 60 feet) in both length and width (Dissanayaka, 2025).

The structure comprises five distinct levels.

The first level, paved with bricks, functions as a courtyard measuring approximately 13.7 × 13.7 meters (45 × 45 feet). Water does not rise to this level (Sumanasekara Banda, 1986; Dissanayaka, 2025).

The intermediate tiers descend toward the center. The third level lies 1.42 meters (4 feet 8 inches) below the second. Stone staircases positioned on all four cardinal sides provide access to the water (Senadheera, 1965; Sumanasekara Banda, 1986).

The fifth and lowest level measures approximately 6.1 × 6.1 meters (20 × 20 feet), with a total depth exceeding 3 meters (10 feet) from the first level (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Hydraulic Technology and Water Management

The engineering system reflects an advanced understanding of water management and sanitation.

Water is supplied from the Maragala Oya, which flows from Maragala Kanda. It is conveyed through a clay pipe network into an underground channel and enters the pond through four lion-mouth spouts (sinha mukha) positioned along the inner walls facing the cardinal directions (Senadheera, 1965).

A notable feature is that the water level never rises above the mouths of the lion spouts, regardless of inflow volume, indicating the presence of an internal overflow regulation mechanism (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Drainage is facilitated by a sluice installed on the western side, through which used water is directed to adjacent paddy fields (Dissanayaka, 2025; Senadheera, 1965).

The system also incorporated filtration measures to prevent environmental contamination, reflecting cultural concerns for both ritual and physical purity. The presence of an ancient, highly decorated latrine further indicates advanced sanitation and urinal technology integrated within this residential complex (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Artistic Refinement and Residential Context

Inlet spouts of Galabedda Biso okuna and Mihintale Lion Pond
source : Ancient pond technology: Insights from the Galabedda Biso Pokuna (Queen’s Pond), Sri Lanka

The pond is distinguished by elaborate stone carvings. Eight stone pillars surround the sinha mukha spouts. Four pillars on the eastern and western sides feature sculpted female figures approximately 1.42 meters (4 feet 8 inches) in height, depicting women emerging from bathing. These carvings strongly suggest that the pond functioned as a royal bathing complex used by women of the nearby Maligatenna palace and their attendants (Senadheera, 1965).

Additional pillars on the northern and southern sides are decorated with liyawala (creeper) motifs.

Archaeological remains indicate that the pond was enclosed within a roofed structure rather than being open to the sky. Thirteen stone bases on each side suggest that wooden pillars once supported a superstructure that fully covered the bathing area. The architectural layout appears to have included separate chambers for changing garments and resting. (Dissanayaka, 2025).

Biso Pokuna At GalabeddaBiso Pokuna At Galabedda

Toilet stones at Biso Pokuna At Galabedda

References

Dissanayaka, D. M. L. D. (2025). Ancient pond technology: Insights from the Galabedda Biso Pokuna (Queen’s Pond), Sri Lanka. Publication of the National Archaeology Symposium, 2025, 258–272.
Dissanayaka, D. M. L. D. (2024). An Archaeological Study of the Udundora, Capital of the Atadahas Rata. Publication of the National Archaeology Symposium, 2024, 124–137.
Sumanasekara Banda, S. J. (1986). ඌවේ දායාද (1st ed.). Sarvodaya Vishwa Lekha.
Senadheera, W. (1965). වන මැද නටබුන් (1st ed.). Walter Senadheera.

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Travelling Directions To Biso Pokuna At Galabedda

If traveling through Monaragala, continue on the Pothuvil Road for approx. 10.5 km. A board set up by the Provincial Ministry of Tourism pinpointed the exact place. This is located between the 264th and 265th km posts. The site is reachable by walking about 100 meters across a paddy field.

Route from Colombo to Galabedda through Monaragala	Route from Monaragala to Galabedda
Distance: 11 km Travel time: 10 mins Driving directions: see on Google map	Distance: 11 km Travel time: 10 mins Driving directions: see on Google map