LOCAL archaeologists have excavated 17 gold-plated Buddha statues from a Unesco World Heritage site believed to have been a monastery more than 2,000 years ago, an official said.
The rare find on Tuesday came during excavations of a rampart of the Abhayagiri temple complex in Anuradhapura, an ancient capital in the island’s centre north.
Project manager Thusitha Herath, of the government’s Central Cultural Fund, said on Wednesday this was the most significant discovery in the archaeologically protected area in more than three decades.
“We have found artefacts before but this is the first time we have seen such a large number of statues,” Herath said from the excavation site, 210km north of Colombo.
The 17 bronze statues plated in gold have features similar to artefacts from the seventh and eighth centuries, estimated to be 1,200 to 1,300 years old, Herath said.
“We have sent these artefacts for further testing and we hope to be able to put them on public display within about a month.”
The statues were found buried at random within the Sacred City of Anuradhapura, a Unesco World Heritage site. — AFP
