| Rankoth Vehera රන්කොත් වෙහෙර | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Golden-Pinnacle Stupa | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Theravada Buddhism |
| Location | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Architecture | |
| Founder | Nissanka Malla of Polonnaruwa |
| Completed | c. 1190 |
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Rankoth Vehera is a stupa located in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka. The stupa was built by Nissanka Malla of Polonnaruwa, who ruled the country from 1187 to 1196.[1] The Rankoth Vehera has been built according to the tradition of the stupas of the Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya and bears a close resemblance to Ruwanwelisaya.[2] In fact, a stone inscription situated close to the stupa even identifies it by the name "Ruwanweli". However, it has later come to be known by the currently used name, Rankoth Vehera.[3] In Sinhalese, ran means gold, kotha is the name given to the pinnacle of a stupa, and vehera means stupa or temple. Thus, the name Rankoth Vehera can be roughly translated to English as "Gold Pinnacled Stupa".[4] Along with the Kiri Vehera, it is one of the most revered stupas in Polonnaruwa.[2]
- ^ Siriweera, W. I. (2004). History of Sri Lanka. Dayawansa Jayakodi & Company. p. 303. ISBN 955-551-257-4.
- ^ a b Sarachchandra, B. S. (1977). අපේ සංස්කෘතික උරුමය (Cultural Heritage) (in Sinhala). Silva, V. P. p. 114.
- ^ Amarasinghe, Malinga (1998). පොළොන්නරුවේ නටබුන් (The Ruins of Polonnaruwa) (in Sinhala). S. Godage & Brothers. pp. 75–77. ISBN 955-20-3051-X.
- ^ Prematilleke, P. L.; Karunaratne, L. K. (2004). Polonnaruwa - The Silver Capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo: Central Cultural Fund, Ministry of Cultural Affairs. pp. 18–19. ISBN 955-613-111-6.