Guard stones (Mura Gal) - Ancient Sri Lanka

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In ancient Sri Lankan architecture there are three main sculptures that can be seen in almost every Buddhist building entrance,

• Moonstone (Sandakada Pahana)
• Guard stones (Mura Gal)
• Balustrades (Korawak Gal)

Previously I have posted about "Sadakada Pahan" also known as Moonstone.

The Sadakada Pahana - Moonstone (Original photos)

Today I wanted to share details about the Guard Stones (Mura Gal) . They are given support to the Balustrades (Korawak Gal)which I will discus in a separate post. Two Guard Stones (Mura Gal) can be seen either side of the staircase right next to the Moonstone (Sandakada Pahana). In the begging they were just plain stones, but latter Guard Stones were craved with symbols that symbolize prosperity and protection.

There are three types of Guard stones,

• Punkalasa – A pot of water with flowers
• Bahirawa - dwarf figures that supposed to protect the wealth
• Naga-Raja – Naga means cobra and it is considered to be the guardian of water and treasure.

Source – amazinglanka

I managed to capture two types of Guard Stones during my visit,

Naga-Raja, Guard Stones

Bahirawa, Guard Stones

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