Distance from Polonnaruwa – 3.2 km (8 minutes)

History of Gal Potha

Gal Potha (Stone Book) is a large stone inscription found next to the Sath Mahal Prasada of Polonnaruwa. It is believed to be a work of King Nissanka Malla of the Polonnaruwa Kingdom. The stone has text written in 3 columns and contains over 4300 characters in a total of 72 lines. The letters are believed to belong to the Sinhala characters of the 12th century. The stone inscription describes the rule of King Nissanka Malla, his eligibility to become the king and his contribution to the development of the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa. It is believed to have been written during the end of the reign of King Nissanka Malla.

Gal Potha: Details of the stone inscriptions

According to what is written on the stone, the stone book is believed to have been brought from Mihinthalaya which is about 50 km away from this location. This signifies the type of technology which could have existed during the time in order to bring it from that far of a distance. The stone has “Gajalakshmi carvings” which consists of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi holding two flowers with two elephants pouring water from both sides.

Getting to Gal Potha

From Polonnaruwa travel approximately 3.2 km along the Maradankadawala-Habarana-Thirukkondaiadimadu Highway up to the sacred square to reach the Gal Potha which is situated next to the Sath Mahal Prasada.

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