The fourth season of the Polonnaruwa Archaeology, Anthropology, and Urban Landscape Project took place in Polonnaruwa from August 12 to September 7, 2025. This season's focus was on using archaeological and anthropological methodologies to better understand the Polonnaruwa Kingdom's urban landscape.

This collaborative effort was organized by the University of Kelaniya and La Trobe University in Australia in collaboration with Sri Lanka's Department of Archaeology, the Central Cultural Fund, the Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology, and the University of Jaffna. Staff and students from the University of Kelaniya, La Trobe University, students from the University of Peradeniya, and research officers from the Government Department of Archaeology and the Central Cultural Fund also joined.

Key efforts included the excavation of four trenches (H, G, I, and J), LiDAR surveys, and auguring investigation, which provided valuable insights into the city's urban planning and evolution.   The artefacts discovered during the excavations of the four trenches included several local and foreign products, coin moulds, beads, iron nails and objects, slags, bangles, glass pieces, and a variety of stones. The LiDAR surveys encompassed the Polonnaruwa hinterland, including the tank top of the Parakrama Samudra, and provided vital insights into the larger urban and agricultural area.

The research project was headed by Chair Senior Professor Prishanta Gunawardhana of the Department of Archaeology, University of Kelaniya, and Dr. Keir Strickland of La Trobe University in Australia. Senior Lecturer (Ms.) Umanga Rammungoda, Head of the Department of Archaeology, along with Senior Lecturer (Mr.) Harendrala Namalgamuwa of the department, served as field directors. In addition, Mr. Bradly Young, Mr. Paul Penzo-Kajewski, Ms. Rebekah Kurpiel from LaTrobe University and Dr. William Christopher Carlton from the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology in Germany served as project directors.