Cave Temples in Sri Lanka

Belilena is the famous largest cave in Sri Lanka. It is located 8km from the town of Kitulgala. It holds evidence of a lost generation of Sri Lanka 12,000 years old; then this cave belonged to the Balangoda Man, described as Homo sapiens balangodensis by Paul E. P. Deraniyagala who found here ten skeletons of these people, who lived 2000 feet above the sea level. The fossils are believed to be more than 32,000 years old.

History

Belilena is a very large cave, in which the 12,000 year old skeletal remains of the prehistoric ‘Balangoda man’ (Homesepiens Balangodensis) have been found. In order to reach the cave you have to walk through the jungle, close to the Inoya estate (approx. 8 km from Kitulgala itself). Located 2000 feet above sea level, the Belilena Cave lies amidst picturesque environs close to Kitulagala. Recent archaeological excavations conducted at the cave have unearthed several fossils believed to be more than 32,000 years old.