Antiquity (before 500)

Anuradhapura

c. 4th c. BCE · Sri Lanka · South Asia · Sacred, imperial, and cosmological order · Planned by Sinhalese kings
Archaeological survey plan of the ancient sacred city of Anuradhapura (1890) showing the layout of the great stupas, the Mahavihara, Abhayagiri and Jetavana monastic complexes, tanks (reservoirs) and
Archaeological survey plan of the ancient sacred city of Anuradhapura (1890) showing the layout of the great stupas, the Mahavihara, Abhayagiri and Jetavana monastic complexes, tanks (reservoirs) and · public-domain

Core idea

Buddhist sacred capital with stupas, monasteries, and engineered tank-irrigation network

Why it matters

One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities; demonstrates Buddhist urbanism and hydraulic engineering at city scale

Description

Capital of Sri Lanka for over a millennium from around the 4th century BCE, Anuradhapura combined a sacred core of colossal brick stupas and monastic complexes with one of the ancient world's most advanced hydraulic systems — vast reservoirs (tanks) and canals that stored monsoon water for the dry season and sustained a large population.

Significance

Anuradhapura is a premier example of Buddhist sacred urbanism fused with hydraulic engineering. It shows religion and water management jointly structuring a city over centuries, and stands among the longest continuously planned urban traditions in the world.

What shaped it

Plans it influenced

Sources

Open it on the interactive timeline →
hub.toekom.st — History of Urbanism · an interactive timeline of 850 planned cities across 6,000 years.