Sigiriya - 2011
Sigirya (Lion Fortess) is an ancient rock fortress which rises 200 metres above the surrounding plain.
The Sigiriya rock is a hardened magma plug from an extinct and long-eroded volcano.
This complex was built by King Kashyapa who seized the throne from King Dhatusena
and then ruled Sri Lanka from 477 to 495AD.
Kashyapa, a son of a concubine, usurped the rightful heir, Mooggallana, who fled to South India.
Fearing an attack from Moggallana, Kashyapa moved the capital to the more secure Sigiriya.
Moggallana's armies eventually arrived and Kashyapa fell on his sword.
We entered the complex through the water gardens on the western side.
Ruins remain of the fountains and serpentine pools that were once here.
The octaganal pool was a pleasant sight.
Then the path led through the boulder gardens.
This is how the entrance to the stairway to the top once appeared.
My IntrepidTravel companions ... Margaret, Eric, Sarah, Dane, Anna and Ray.
Ruins of an extensive palace complex remain on the top of the rock.
There was even a bathing pool.
A view of the water gardens that we walked through on the way up.
According to legend the king had more than 500 concubines.
There were magnificent frescoes of some of them on the walls of a cave on the side of Sigiriya.
These holes in the rock once would have supported roof beams.
Sigiriya was a most impressive World Heritage sight.
Sigirya (Lion Fortess) is an ancient rock fortress which rises 200 metres above the surrounding plain.
The Sigiriya rock is a hardened magma plug from an extinct and long-eroded volcano.
This complex was built by King Kashyapa who seized the throne from King Dhatusena
and then ruled Sri Lanka from 477 to 495AD.
Kashyapa, a son of a concubine, usurped the rightful heir, Mooggallana, who fled to South India.
Fearing an attack from Moggallana, Kashyapa moved the capital to the more secure Sigiriya.
Moggallana's armies eventually arrived and Kashyapa fell on his sword.
We entered the complex through the water gardens on the western side.
Ruins remain of the fountains and serpentine pools that were once here.
The octaganal pool was a pleasant sight.
Then the path led through the boulder gardens.
This is how the entrance to the stairway to the top once appeared.
My IntrepidTravel companions ... Margaret, Eric, Sarah, Dane, Anna and Ray.
Ruins of an extensive palace complex remain on the top of the rock.
There was even a bathing pool.
A view of the water gardens that we walked through on the way up.
According to legend the king had more than 500 concubines.
There were magnificent frescoes of some of them on the walls of a cave on the side of Sigiriya.
These holes in the rock once would have supported roof beams.
Sigiriya was a most impressive World Heritage sight.
