Jaffna Peninsula’s history centers on the Buddha’s mediation of a gem-studded throne dispute between Naga kings Mahodara and Chulodara. Archaeological evidence, like the Vallipuram gold plate and limestone statues, proves the entire Jaffna Peninsula was a flourishing 2nd-century Buddhist center under royal patronage.
Nagadeepa Viharaya marks the Buddha’s second visit to Sri Lanka to settle a Naga king’s dispute. Enshrining a gem-studded throne, this sacred Jaffna site survived civil conflict to become a rebuilt pilgrimage hub, accessible via a scenic causeway and boat journey.
The Ilavalai Lighthouse is square in design, with a hollow central shaft. A cement stairway leads to the top platform. Unlike traditional lighthouses equipped with parabolic reflectors, this structure uses a single powerful light to guide fishing boats approaching the shore.
Bordering the well-known Nilavarai Bottomless Well (also called the Puttur Well) and the nearby Sivan Kovil lie the little-known ruins of an ancient Buddhist site—one that has faded from public memory but once bore significant religious and historical importance.
The museum houses a rich and varied collection of archaeological and cultural artifacts either discovered in the region or donated by individuals. These include stone sculptures of both Buddhist and Hindu origin, ornaments made of beads, ancient coins, ivory and metal objects, ceramic ware, wooden artifacts, colonial-era gravestones (spanning from the Dutch to British periods), and dolls.
The Sri Naga Viharayas beginnings date back to 1892, when a small group of Buddhists in Jaffna leased a quarter-acre plot of jungle near the Ariyankulam Tank from the local Sivan Kovil. They built a modest image house for worship, though no Sinhalese monks visited Jaffna during that time.
Built by the Portuguese, only a few remains exist of this forgotten fort. The eastern basitan today is inside Thal Sevana Resort and western bastian is near the Kankesanthurai Lighthouse. Here parts of the massive walls built by the Portuguese can be still seen fallen off to the sea.
The IPKF memorial at Palaly remembers 33 Indian soldiers of the 10 Indian Para Comando unit including Lieutenant Colonel Arun Kumar Chhabra who laid their lives for the sake of the territorial integrity of their friendly neighbouring country.
This Trigonometrical Station is built on a square platform with 4 steps on all four sides. Four cylindrical pillars stand on the platform. The diameter of each cylinder gradually decreases as it goes higher. The Bottom cylinder is shorter than the other 3. The top 3 cylinders seem to be of the same height.
The ancient Bo Tree at Paralay Murugan Kovil in Chulipuram East in Walikamam West is believed to be the very first sapling of the Sri Maja Bodhi in Anuradhapura. However the Buddhist pilgrims to Jaffna seems to be have totally forgotten about this historic site today.
Chirutivu Island (Siruthivu Island) is a tear shaped island close to the mainland of Jaffna which has been sold to property developer with the intention of building a luxury eco tourism resort. Work has been started about 10 years ago but not completed.
Katchatheevu (Kachchativu) is a small 163-acre (0.66 square kilometers), barren, uninhabited island located in the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka. It lies right in the center of Rameswaram in India and Delft Island of Sri Lanka with about 20km on both sides.
Around the main stupa on Delft Island, the remains of 4 other smaller attendant stupas were found in the 1830s. All of them are cube shaped. According to him, there were originally 6 Parivar Stupas here. There have always been two stupas on both sides of the steps leading to the square platform from the east and west and one stupa each from the north and south.
Pungudutivu is an island in Jaffna peninsula separated from the mainland from east by a shallow channel approximately 3.5 km away. A 3.8 km causeway connects this island to mainland. A 1.75 km wide channel to Nainativu separates the island from the west.
Chundikkulam Lagoon and its surrounding area was designated as a bird sanctuary on in 1938 and became a national park in 2015. Chundikkulam Lagoon is partly surrounded by mangrove swamps and seagrass beds. The surrounding area includes palmyra palm trees, scrub forests and a variety of dry
Singhai Ariya, was the first Ariya Chakravarthy (13th century). Originally from South India, he eventually made Nallur the capital and sought divine protection to the celebrated city by erecting temples for worship of Hindu deities, in the four directions around it. Veyil Ugantha Pillaiyar Kovil was erected in the eastern approaches to Nallur.
The Queens Tower at Delft is 55 feet in height. It has five levels, each level a little smaller than the bottom. There is a doorway on the bottom level which goes all the way to the opposite side of the tower.
Very little is documented about the trigonometric station, Kings Tower. However W. H Cole in 1884 records 2 triangulation stations in Delft as observed in 1876. One on the north western end of the island and the other on the south eastern point of the island.
uins of an ancient stable built by the Dutch can be found on the western edge of the island, 380 meters inland from the sea. The stable is about 150 meters long 10 meters wide and One full side wall exists today. The stable has been built on two rows 36 large square pillars.
The hospital built by the Dutch can be found in front of current police station on the island. The tiles of this building have been imported from Bangalore, India and bears the year 1865. Currently this building is been renovated.
