Jetavanaramaya

Jetavanaramaya is a Buddhist stupa located in the ancient city of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. It is one of the tallest ancient monuments in the world and among the largest brick structures ever built. Construction began in the 3rd century CE during the reign of King Mahasena as part of a vast monastic complex. The stupa was intended to enshrine sacred relics and to serve as a focus of Buddhist worship and monastic life in the kingdom.

Architecturally, Jetavanaramaya is a monumental brick dome set on a large circular drum, originally crowned with a yasti (spire) and an umbrella (chatra). It demonstrates advanced brickwork and mass engineering characteristic of the early Anuradhapura period. The base is enormous and the structure dominates the surrounding sacred precinct. Its height is commonly cited around 122 meters (approximately 400 feet), making it one of the tallest ancient brick structures in the world; its sheer volume underscores the resources and organizational capacity of the era.

The stupa is part of the Sacred City of Anuradhapura, a UNESCO World Heritage Site designated in 1982 for its extensive hydraulic engineering, urban planning, and monumental religious monuments. The Jetavanaramaya complex also contains other monastic buildings and a network of meditation spaces, reflecting the once-thriving Buddhist university and monastery at Anuradhapura. Today the site remains an important pilgrimage and tourist destination, with preservation efforts addressing weathering and structural concerns. Jetavanaramaya derives its name from Jetavana, the Indian monastery associated with the Buddha.