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Vietnamese archaeologists find ancient musical instruments

Submitted by Andy B on Friday, 04 February 2005  Page Views: 2185

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Musical instruments thought to be about 3,000 years old have been found by a team of Vietnamese archeologists. Known as lithophones, the ancient instruments are made of 11 slabs of stone.

The lithophones were found in the southern province of Binh Duong in early January at a site that stretches some 20ha near a small hill in My Loc village in Tan My Commune of Tan Uyen District.

The broken instruments were buried deep in an 8sq.m pit, said Dr Bui Chi Hoang, deputy director of the Archaeology Centre of the Southern Institute for Social and Human Sciences.

Hoang said the first discovery of ancient lithophones took place at an archeaological dig in Binh Da Village in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.

"This finding marks a milestone in the long history of traditional musical instruments in the country," he said.

In 1949, lithophones were also found by French ethnologist Georges Condominas in N’Dut Lieng Krac Village of the Central Highlands province of Dac Lac. The instrument was exhibited in Paris a year later.

Hoang said an ancient Vietnamese lithophone is also housed in a museum in Los Angeles.

Ancient lithophones have been found in Loc Tan (Binh Phuoc Province) and Di Linh (Lam Dong Province) as well.

Prof Le Xuan Diem, of the Southern Institute of Social and Human Sciences, said the instrument was previously believed to be a musical instrument of the people in the Central Highlands.

"But recent discoveries have shown that lithophones were also used in ancient villages along Dong Nai River."

The My Loc archeological site was jointly excavated by the Archeology Centre and Binh Duong Museum under a programme conducted by the Binh Duong Department for Sciences and Technology from December 6 last year to January 12.

In addition to ancient lithophones, archeologists found hundreds of pieces of stone tools such as axes, hoes, graters, and porcelain wares, including pots, jars and bowls.

These remains have helped archeologists date the site to 3,000 to 3,500 years ago.

The discovery also sheds light on the history of the eastern section of the South Viet Nam and Binh Duong Province.

Source: Vietnam News Service
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Monumental blunder by coldrum on Sunday, 23 October 2011
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Monumental blunder

Historic relics suffer as Hue pays excessive attention to one dynasty


Thousands of artifacts dating back to prehistoric age and the Sa Huynh Culture (1,000 BC and 200 AD) excavated from Con Rang and Con Dai archaeological sites are stored in a dilapidated warehouse belonging to the Thua ThienHue Museum of History and Revolution. On rainy days, people cover the artifacts with raincoats and waterproof cloth.

The ancient capital of Hue is a land rich with culture and a history of at least 2,500 years, but the recognition of its cultural and historical heritage is dominated far too much by the Nguyen Dynasty, experts say.

The Nguyen Dynasty ruled Vietnam for 144 years, from 1802 to 1946.

However, said researcher Ho Tan Phan, “They [local researchers] just focus on the Nguyen Dynasty, forgetting and ignoring other periods, including the prehistoric age, the Cham culture, and 700 years of the Ly, Tran, Ho and Le dynasties from the 14th century, as if Hue has only had the Nguyen Dynasty.

“Each historical period has its own value. That we keep focusing only on a certain period will lead us to improper on co tri tan (Remembering the old to know the new).”

According to a report by the Hue Ancient Capital Relics Preservation Center, since 1990, the center has received VND25-50 billion (US$1.3- 2.6 million) every year to protect and maintain the Nguyen emperors’ Complex of Monuments, which was acknowledged as a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 1993. Recently, the government approved a budget of VND2.3 trillion ($115 million) for Thua Thien-Hue Province to implement the overall preservation of relics in Hue for the 2011-2020 period.

The total investment on the Complex of Monuments for the past 15 years is quite small ($20 million), just enough to build a small bridge. However, it is also a huge number when compared to the $150,000 used to maintain 870 other relics in Hue every year – which is just enough to temporarily prevent them from degradation, according to director Phan Tien Dung of the province’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

“This imbalanced policy has led many relics to suffer and pushed them to serious degradation at present,” Dung said.

Thousands of artifacts dating back to prehistoric age and the Sa Huynh Culture (1,000 BC and 200 AD) excavated from the Con Rang and Con Dai archaeological sites are kept in a dilapidated warehouse belonging to the Thua Thien-Hue Museum of History and Revolution. The museum has no space to display these artifacts, according to its director Cao Huy Hung, who said he feels ashamed to open its doors to visitors.

“In rainy days, we have to cover the objects with raincoats or waterproof cloths,” Hung said, “and thousands of valuable and rare artifacts have had to ‘migrate’ to the Temple of Literature inside the Complex of Monuments for more than 30 years.”

The Temple of Literature itself is in degradation now, Hung said, from the display area to the museum staffs’ office, so they have to cover documents and other artifacts with raincoats as well.

Due to the limited space at present, the museum only displays objects from the 1930-1954 and 1954- 1975 periods, apart from a gallery of artifacts representing different periods in Vietnamese history.

Outside the museum, the Cham culture’s twin towers Lieu Coc in Phong Dien District have been damaged to such an extent that nothing remains, although they were in good shape ten years ago. The Thanh Loi relic, located in the center of Hue Town was removed from the cadastral map in 1997 and later encroached upon by private buildings.

The tombs of the Nguyen lords in southwestern Hue have been abandoned except for visits by descendants to clear them and offer incense during death anniversaries.

Ngo Hoa, deputy chairperson of the Thua Thien-Hue People’s Committee, said that though there were many activities organized in the area to promote Hue’s diverse cultures during different historical periods, “It is not an exaggeration to say that the Nguyen Dynasty has attracted too much attention from us.”

According to researcher, Dr. Tran Duc Anh Son, the cultural heritage created during Nguyen Dynasty in Hue is so great and massive that it seemingly obscures what existed before and after its time. In addition, in more than one century, the Nguyen Dynasty had created a cultural heritage equivalent to what their predecessors did in the previous 18 centuries.

“Researchers from Hue prefer the Nguyen Dynasty for the vast number of documents available related to the period,” Son said.

Back to the issue of the degraded museum in the province, according to researchers Tran Duc Anh Son and Nguyen Phuoc Hai Trung, director of the Hue Royal Fine Arts Museum, “A proper, well-constructed museum building alone cannot change the situation, for most museums in Vietnam are considered administrative units, and do not have enough archaeologists and expert care, especially in Hue, where most museum staff are transferred from other sectors.”

All the culture experts and researchers agree that in order to deal with the situation, Hue should have a comprehensive policy on research, conservation and promotion of the values of all historical periods in the province.

They say an archaeological map of the province and the establishment of a department of archaeologists under the province’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism should be a top priority.


http://www.thanhniennews.com/2010/Pages/20101225213842.aspx
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Ancient gongs discovered in Kon Tum by coldrum on Wednesday, 17 October 2007
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Ancient gongs discovered in Kon Tum

More than 30 sets of special ancient gongs have been identified in Central Highlands Kon Tum Province, according to the provincial Department of Culture and Information.

The antiques were among estimated 2,000 sets of gongs that are currently being preserved by the locals, according the department.

The department has worked to draw up a plan to better preserve this unique musical instrument of ethnic groups in the country.

Gongs were found in Vietnam in the Bronze Age. They were cast in bronze, an alloy of copper, zinc and lead. Highlanders believe that when gong is played, there is an encounter between human and spirit worlds.
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/lifestyle/2007/09/744513/
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