The world’s tallest Christmas Tree, a privately-funded initiative by Ports and Shipping Minister Arjuna Ranatunga, was unveiled for public viewing at the Galle Face green on Saturday evening.
The organisers said the 238 foot Christmas tree is 18 metres taller than the existing Guinness record held by a Chinese firm that put up a 180 foot tree in the city of Guangzhou. According to the organisers the plan was to build a 100 metre Christmas tree and the height had to be pruned down due to construction delays. The tree also has 600,000 coloured LED bulbs along with a 20 foot Santa and a 40 foot sleigh. Its frame is decorated with thousands of pine cones. Picture by Rukmal Gamage