The statue, which has a height of more than 14 m (46 ft), depicts the Buddha with a hand raised in reassurance, a variation of the Abhaya mudra.

[4][5] The statue was set within a large image house or shrine, of which parts of the lower walls remain.

[7] The Avukana statue is widely believed to have been constructed in the 5th century, but several opinions have been expressed from the time of Harry Charles Purvis Bell, Ananda Coomaraswamy, and Senarath Paranavithana.

[8] A comprehensive review of the evidence, and a close assessment of the sculpture's style, were undertaken by Diran K. Dohanian, who concluded, based on comparisons with Buddhas elsewhere in Sri Lanka and those produced for the Amaravati school, that the Aukana Buddha belongs to the 8th century.

[8] This is confirmed by a donative inscription, found in 1951 on the north wall of the shrine, that is written in Sinhala and dates to the 8th century.

According to legend, the two statues are the result of a competition between a stone sculpting guru (master) and a goal (pupil).

The Avukana statue is considered to be the better of the two, and the similarities between them have led historians to believe that the story is true.

[11] However, that is a mere legend as the Sasseruwa statue was built nearly four hundred years before the Avukana Buddha image.