Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya in Sigiriya (සීගිරිය පොතාන රජමහා විහාරය)

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Pothana main cave where excavations were done
Photo courtesy of Dr. Ashan Geeganage

Potana Rajamaha Viharaya at Sigiriya is an ancient cave temple rarely visited by pilgrims that lies west of the Rock Fortress of Sigiriya.

The temple lies on a rocky outcrop and 10 caves have been recorded in this rock cluster. The temple is built around 2 large caves on this rock. The largest cave is 12m long and 7.3 meters high. The smallest is just 4.3 meters long and 4 meters high.

Potana Pre Historic Caves at Sigiriya

The main cave at Potana has been subject to excavations by the PGIAR in 1991 and over 40,000 animal bone fragments and stone tools had been discovered. Dating back to the Mesolithic period, approximately 6000 BP (4050 BCE), this ancient cave complex has been a site of remarkable archaeological findings, offering valuable insights into the lives and practices of the island’s early inhabitants.

The oldest cultural layer of the Potana prehistoric cave was found to be approximately 6,000 years old based on charcoal dating (Carbon-14 dates: 3913–3727 BCE [Ua 5685] and 3916–3709 BCE [Ua 5686]).

The Potana prehistoric rock cave is located in an intermediate climatic zone but is better classified as part of the dry zone. However, some layers of the cave contain evidence of Acavus snails, which are typically found in wet-zone rainforests. This suggests the cave’s surroundings were wetter in the past.

The presence of Acavus snails shows that the environment around the cave gradually shifted from wet to intermediate and eventually to dry conditions. This indicates that prehistoric humans living in the cave about 6,000 years ago adapted to these changing environments. The remains of mammals found in the cave confirm they hunted local animals for food.

View towards the Dambulla Rock - Pothana Rajamaha Viharaya

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Map of Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya

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Travel Directions to Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya

Route from Colombo to Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya	Route from Habarana to Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya
Through : Katunayake Expressway – Central Expressway – Dambulla – Inamaluwa Distance : 175 km Travel time : 4 hours. Driving directions: see on Google map	Distance : 18 km Travel time : 25 minutes hours. Driving directions: see on Google map

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Potana Pre Historic Caves at Sigiriya

Also See

Map of Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya

Travel Directions to Potana Caves and Rajamaha Viharaya

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