Polon­naruwa was the sec­ond cap­i­tal of Sri Lan­ka after the destruc­tion of Anu­rad­ha­pu­ra in 993. It com­pris­es, besides the Brah­man­ic mon­u­ments built by the Cholas, the mon­u­men­tal ruins of the fab­u­lous gar­­den-city cre­at­ed by Parakram­abahu I in the 12th cen­tu­ry.