The largest and oldest of all Sri Lanka's ancient cities, Anuradhapura is a fitting climax to any tour of the Cultural Triangle. Arguably, it takes a bit more effort to imagine it as it was more than 2000 years ago, with palaces and huge dagobas standing up to nine storeys high, a main processional avenue 24km (16 miles) long, and the richly decorated, ostentatious mansions of Sinhalese nobles and wealthy foreign merchants.

Founded by King Pandukhabaya in 437BC, by the mid-3rd century BC Anuradhapura's fame had spread as far as the Roman-Hellenistic world of the Mediterranean and by the 1st century AD it had established trade and diplomatic links with China. The Jetavana treasures, unearthed over the past 20 years (some are now displayed in the partially completed Jetavanarama Museum, on site) show evidence of these links to east and west.

Anuradhapura was the royal seat of more than 250 Buddhist and Hindu kings recorded in the royal genealogies, and the preeminent city on the island for some 1400 years.

Anuradhapura's proximity to southern India both enriched it and encouraged the kingdom's conversion to Buddhism, but was also its eventual downfall, making it vulnerable to the invading Tamil forces of Rajaraja Chola, who sacked the city in the 11th century AD. The Sinhalese capital then moved to Polonnaruwa. Although attempts were made to preserve its monuments after the overthrow and expulsion of the Chola dynasty, it was never restored to its former glory.

The Mawathu Oya River forms the boundary between the sacred ancient city and the modern town of Anuradhapura, east of the river. To the west are several large tanks, some of them the work of King Mahasena (AD276-303), whose passion for large-scale construction also endowed the city with the enormous Jetavanarama Dagoba.

As at Polonnaruwa, Anuradhapura's secular buildings were built partly or entirely of wood, which has not survived the centuries, whereas the giant dagobas, made entirely of earth, brick and stone, still stand complete. All sites and museums within the sacred city complex of Anuradhapura are open 08:00-17:00 daily

Sri Maha Bodhi (Sacred Bo-Tree)

Said to be the very tree brought to Sri Lanka as a gift from the Buddhist Indian Emperor Ashok in the 3rd century BC, this huge specimen of Ficus reliyiosa, or sacred figtree, has a real claim to be genuinely the oldest tree in the world. It has been guarded by an uninterrupted series of guardian monks since it was planted.Itstands at the crossroads of Sri Maha Bodi Mawatha Mihindu Road and Kurunegala Road and is the best place to start exploring the sacred city.

Loha Prasada (Brazen Palace)

A powerful imagination is needed to reconstruct this vast building, next to the sacred tree, and founded by King Dutugemunu (reigned 161-137BC). Once home to a community of 1000 Buddhist monks, whose duties included tending the sacred tree,its 1600pillars supported nine upper storeys surmounted by a bronze roof. The whole building was decorated with silver and gems. Only the columns remain.

Ruwanweli Seya Dagoba

This dagoba is among the more impressive of Anuradhapura's monuments, if only because of its huge size. Standing 55m (180ft) tall, it was originally even taller. The base is supported by a ring of carved elephants, of which a few stone originals stand near the west door. The remainder are modern restorations. This dagoba too is the work of Dutugemunu, although he died before it could be completed.

Anuradhapura Archaeological Museum

The first of five new museums planned for the Cultural Triangle, the Anuradhapura Archaeological Museum, between the Brazen Palace and the Ruwanweli Seya, contains a range of exhibits discovered on the site along with explanatory displays. Among these is a model of the Thuparama Vatadage and a relic chamber from Mihintale .

Thuparama Vatadage

This shrine, immediately to the north of the Ruwanweli Seya, is the oldest in Sri Lanka and contains the collarbone of the Buddha, a gift from the Emperor Ashoka to King Devanampiyitissa, who converted his kingdom to Buddhism. Originally built in the 3rd century BC, it has been extensively rebuilt over the centuries (most recently in 1840) and there is little to distinguish it from other dagobas around the island. It is ringed by columns which originally supported a circular roof.

Royal Palace

About 200m (219yd) north of the Thuparama Vatadage, on the opposite side of the road, the Royal Palace ruins date from the 12th century AD, when King Vijayabahu I made a last attempt to restore some of Anuradhapura's glory and prestige. Immediately south of it is the ruin of a temple which may have been the first to house the sacred Buddha's tooth relic which now resides in Kandy and is said to have come to Sri Lanka in AD313.

Jetavanarama Dagoba and Museum

Looming over the entire site, the Jetavanarama Dagoba is almost 122m (400ft) tall, with a base diameter of more than 113m (370ft), putting it on a par with some of the pyramids of Egypt and making it the largest Buddhist building in southern Asia. Its core is a gigantic earthen mound, encased in brickwork, and extensive reconstruction by the UNESCO Central Cultural Fund is now nearing completion. Next to it stands the Jetavanarama Museum, housing finds from the site discovered during the reconstruction process. They include coins, Buddhist statues, seals made from precious stones, and a hugecollection of beads made from clay, silver, gems, gold and ivory.

Abhayagiri Dagoba

Almost as large as the Jetavanarama Dagoba is this gigantic shrine, now standing almost 110m (361 ft) tall. It was built by King Abhaya in the 1st century BC and around it stood a monastery complex with a community of 5000 monks. There are exterior reliefs of elephants, and to the north of the building a stone slab is imprinted with what is said to be a footprint of the Buddha. South of the dagoba is the Abhayagiri Museum, a giftto the people of Sri Lanka from Chinese Buddhists,which contains relics and archaeological finds illustrating the ancient connection between China and Sri Lanka. In AD412 the Chinese pilgrim Fa Hien visited Anuradhapura and wrote an account of his travels

Ratna Prasada (Gem Palace)

Northwest of the Abhayagiri Dagoba are to be found the remnants of a 2nd century AD monastery palace of which only the mighty pillars,carved with nagn (benevolent snake spirit) symbols,remain.
Kuttam Pokuna (Twin Ponds)
Two lovely ritual bathing pools, fed by a stream, situated to the east of the Abhayagiri Dagoba, were once used by the monks of the Dagoba Monastery.

Samadhi Buddha Statue

Southeast of the Abhayagiri Dagoba, this image of a seated Buddha dates from the 4th century AD and is one of the finest of Sri Lanka's representations of the Buddha. Southwest of the sacred bo-tree,on the shore of the Tissa Wewa tank, are several other interesting monuments.

Mirisawetiya Dagoba

This is yet another enormous shrine, recently restored to become one of the most prominent landmarks of the sacred city.

Royal Pleasure Gardens

Also known as the Park of the Goldfish, these gardens are a testament to the skill of the architects and landscape gardeners of Dutugemunu's reign. Covering approximately 14 ha (35 acres), they are built around ponds and rocks, with views over the Tissa Wewa tank, and were intended as a tranquil retreat from affairs of state. Some of that tranquillity survives.

lsurumuniya Vihara

This rock temple, cunningly built into the crevices between great smooth basalt boulders, is one of Anuradhapura's hidden secrets. It is noted for its sensual sculptures of embracing couples, indicating a culture which, while devout, was clearly not prudish. Dating from the 3rd century BC, it stands beside ponds above which the rock face has been carved with cheerfullooking elephants at play. More reliefs are on view inside a small museum within the temple, among them a slab that shows two lovers seated side by side and popularly said to be Saliya, son of King Dutugemunu, and his wife Asokamala. Saliya met Asokamala walking in the Pleasure Gardens, fell in love and married her. As she was not of royal blood, he forfeited his claim to the throne. It's a pretty story - but the carving, in the Gupta style of southern India in the 5th century, is more likely of a Hindu god and his queen.