Kadugannawa Ambalama

The Kadugannawa Ambalama is an old wayside rest in the village of Kadugannawa in Kegalle District, Sri Lanka. It is located on the roadside of Colombo - Kandy highway about 7 km distant from the Pilimatalawa town.

History

Ambalamas are traditional resting places built by locals to accommodate wayfarers who were travelling to distant places. They were also used as a place for people to gather, hold meetings and serve as a public place in society. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, Ambalamas were spread all over the country. The Ambalama at Kadugannawa is one such structure built during the British Period (1815-1948) of Sri Lanka (De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009).

The structure

The structure has a rectangular ground plan with an additional porch in front (De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009). The porch is entered through two sets of steps. The inner space of the Ambalama has been divided by a wall (De Silva & Chandrasekara, 2009). The roof is paved with clay tiles and supported by columns and walls made of wattle and daub.

The Ambalama was recently restored by the Ministry of Tourism under the guidance of the Department of Archeology.

A protected monument

Kadugannawa Ambalama in Pahala Kadugannawa Village in the Mahakadurawa Grama Niladhari Wasama of the Mawanella Divisional Secretary’s Division is an archaeological protected monument, declared by a government gazette notification published on 22 July 2011.

Attribution

1) Kadugannawa Ambalama by MediaJet is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

References

1) De Silva, N.; Chandrasekara, D.P., 2009. Heritage Buildings of Sri Lanka. Colombo: The National Trust Sri Lanka, ISBN: 978-955-0093-01-4. p.166.

2) The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. No: 1716. 22 July 2011. pp.510-511.

Location Map

This page was last updated on 2 January 2022
For a complete tourist map follow this link: Lankapradeepa Tourist Map