| Cultural Triangle
| Dambulla Cave Temples |
| Sigiriya Fortess and Nymph Paintings |
The shadows of clouds drift across the jungle canopy. Terraces, boulders and water gardens grace the foot of the rock. The view from atop the ancient fortress-palace is well worth the steep trek, a journey that will take you up stone steps, past the Apsara paintings, and through the remains of a once-towering lion statue, which mark the entrance to the upper-most level.
The beautiful, amazingly preserved Apsara, or celestial nymph, paintings have puzzled and intrigued leading scholars. Current scholarly opinion regards them as masterpieces with multiple functions: part decorative, part religious, part erotica and part expression of the king’s power.
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