Panavitiya Ambalama (පනාවිටිය අම්බලම)

RATE THIS LOCATION :1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (4 votes, average: 3.25 out of 5)
Loading...

Two and a half hours of traveling we reached our destination the Panavitiya Ambalama. As we stopped our vehicle and peered out at the modest wooden structure standing in a clearing of flat land bordering a stretch of paddy fields, I was disappointed. In fact, for a minute I wondered if we had come to the correct site. From where we stood we could see nothing of the wood carvings that this ambalama was so famous for.

But it didn’t take long for us to discover its wealth of wooden wonder. As we carefully entered its inside the carvings seemed to overwhelm us, covering almost every available space – unique concepts and combinations of art themes as varied as its numbers.

The pillars that held the humble roof of Panavitiya Ambalama were abundantly decorated. The nine inner pillars some 6′ in height were so profusely carved that I almost held my breath. Exquisitely carved rectangular squares halfway on the pillars showed off mythical creatures, floral designs, and scenes from everyday life including wrestlers, musicians, dancers, acrobats, persons greeting each other, persons chatting, etc. The corner pillars had grandiose capitals – almost out of place in this humble ambalama. The nineteen pillars that formed the outer posts were less elaborately carved. But displayed an elegance beyond compare.

The woodwork of the roof consisted of beams, posts, rafters, and reapers of exceptional wooden ornamentation. There were processions of animals, mythical creatures, peraheras with musicians, snakes in twisted combat, and demigods. Fancy flowery and leafy designs fill in and give the finishing touches

The structure of the Panavitiya Ambalama itself stood on platforms 12′ 4″ and 9′ 6″ and raised about a foot from the ground with rubble, its log base resting on four rounded boulders.

The Panavitiya ambalama has been dated to the 18th century. The Department of Archeology has renovated and restored it. It is believed that the ambalama may have stood as a rest hall route to an ancient footpath leading from Dambadeniya to Kurunegala and Yapahuwa. Today it stands as a unique monument of our ancient transport system. – a witness to maybe a million passers-by. And we sat down to enjoy a meal of imbul-kiribath sharing with its sole occupant a brown dog with sad eyes.

by Kishanie S. Fernando
Daily Mirror

Also See

Map of Panavitiya Ambalama

Please click on the button below to load the Dynamic Google Map (ගූගල් සිතියම් පහලින්)
.

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.

Travel Directions to Panavitiya Ambalama

Traveling on the Negombo Kurunegala route, The turn-off is before reaching Narammala town on the road leading to the Matiyagana school. You need to travel about 4 km on this road to reach the Ambalama

  • closest town : Narammala
  • Local Autority : Alauwa / Alawwa
  • District : Kurunegala
Route from Colombo to Panavitiya Ambalama Route from Kurunegala to Panavitiya Ambalama
Through : Ja-Ela – Minuwangoda – Divualpitiya – Giriulla – Dambadeniya
Distance : 77 km
Travel time : 2 hours.
Driving directions : see on google map
Through : Narammala
Distance :28 km
Travel time : 40 minutes.
Driving directions : see on google map

© www.amazinglanka.com

0-09 m (87) 10-19 m (77) 20-29 m (46) 30-39 m (50) 40-49 m (24) 50-99 m (49) Ambalama (164) Ancient Anicuts (33) Articles (0) Asanaghara (8) Ashtapala Bodhi (5) Attraction Articles (3) Attractions (227) Beaches (9) Biosphere Reserves (3) Botanical Gardens (5) Bridges (34) Cave Art (6) Caving (7) Churches (17) Cities (9) Destinations (16) Dethis Pala Bodhi (16) Devalaya (42) Events (2) Flora and Fauna (76) Forts (50) Heritage (1657) Heritage Articles (30) Historic Events (5) History (7) Hot Springs (9) Hydro Heritage (93) Irrigation Articles (4) Islands (15) Kovils (25) Kuludage (11) Lighthouses (27) Memorials (53) Mile Posts (6) Mosques (3) Museums (8) National Parks (22) over 100 m (20) Pabbatha Vihara (11) Personalities (7) Pillar/Slab Inscriptions (41) Pre Historic Burial Sites (20) Prehistory (38) Prehistory Articles (2) RAMSAR sites (6) Ravana (12) Reservoirs (63) Rock Inscriptions (11) Ruins in Wilpattu (5) Ruins in Yala (25) Santuaries (7) Sluice Gates (14) Stone Bridges (18) Strict Nature Reserves (3) Sumaithangi (3) Survey Towers (15) Tampita Vihara (240) Tourist Attractions (201) Travel (3) View Points (18) Walawwa (13) War Memorials (26) Waterfalls (375) Wildlife Articles (24) Yathuru Pokuna (4)

Abhayagiri Monastery (20) Ampara District (192) Anuradhapura District (217) Badulla District (119) Batticaloa District (22) Colombo District (80) Galle District (64) Gampaha District (62) Hambantota District (122) India (1) Jaffna District (73) Kalutara District (51) Kandy District (205) Kegalle District (158) Kilinochchi District (13) Kingdom of Anuradhapura (85) Kingdom of Kandy (15) Kingdom of Kotte (9) Kingdom of Polonnaruwa (55) King Kavan Tissa (1) King Mahasen (1) King Walagamba (3) Kurunegala District (174) Maha Vihara (16) Mannar District (47) Mannar Island (10) Matale District (87) Matara District (47) Mihintale (22) Monaragala District (102) Mullaitivu District (26) Negombo (5) Nuwara Eliya District (117) Polonnaruwa District (121) Puttalam District (37) Ratnapura District (164) Trincomalee District (52) Vavuniya District (32) waterfalls in Sinharaja (3) z Delft 1 (5) z Jaffna 1 (20) z Jaffna 2 (24) z Jaffna 3 (13)

Leave a Reply