Jethawanaramaya

At a height of over 400 feet (120m), it is the tallest stua in the world, largest brick building ever built, and 3rd largest structure in the ancient world, Approximately 93,300,000 baked bricks were used to build the stupa (Ratnayake 1993). This stupa belongs to the Sagalika sect. The compound covers approximately 8 acres (5.6 hectares) and once housed over 3000 Buddhist monks. One side of the stupa is 576 feet long, and the flights of stairs at each of the four sides of it are 28 feet wide. The doorpost to the shrine, which is situated in the courtyard, is 27 feet high.

The stupa has a 6m deep foundation, and sits on bedrock. Stone inscriptions in the courtyard give the names of people who donated to the building effort.“It is said by the British archaeologists who excavated the site that the amount of bricks used to build the stupa is enough to build a three-meter high wall, running all the way from Edinburgh to London.”