Ancient cultural site on verge of disintegration

The impressive array of pillars and stones used to be a major monastery complex founded by a Cham king in the late ninth century. 

During the Vietnam War, Dong Duong citadel in Quang Nam Province was devastated.

Most of the sculptures that survived the bombings are now being kept in museums across the country – particularly in the Champa Sculpture Museum in the central city of Da Nang.

The historical site, nationally recognized in January 2001, is now on the verge of disappearing, with residents and outsiders stealing thousands of ancient bricks along with sculptures they pilfered without permission.

Locals say the 33,000-square-meter complex still holds thousands of artifacts buried by the 1968 bombing.

The origin of the endangered historical site is as follows.

In 875 A.D., King Cham Indravarman II established the Mahayana Buddhist monastery of Dong Duong and dedicated the temple to Bodhisattva Lokesvara in an area later known as Binh Dinh Bac Village in Quang Nam’s Thang Binh District.

In 1901, a French expert named L. Finot announced his discovery of 229 artifacts in the Dong Duong area, including a striking 108-centimeter Buddha statue that highlighted the influence of Indian arts.

A year later, architecture H. Parmentier succeeded in unearthing other ancient architectural features at the site.

According to Parmentier, the site’s main temple and its surrounding towers were arranged in a west-to-east axis that covers 1,300 meters.

The main temple was divided into three parts, distinguished by their peculiar architectures.

Additionally, there was a Vihara monastery with a seated Theravada on a chair with both hands placed on his knees, a series of statues representing gods who uphold Buddhism’s law and four figures of the guardian Dvarapala two meters in height.

In 1978, local residents recovered the statue of Bodhisattva Lokesvara made in brass, 114 centimeters tall.

Experts consider this relic the biggest statue of the Cham civilization and one of the most important sculptures in Southeast Asia.

Yet, Ho Xuan Tinh, deputy director of the province’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said the local government has no funding to preserve the historical site or to excavate potentially hidden relics.

A Thanh Nien reporter followed two local officials to visit the entrance gate of Sang Tower, one of the few architectural structures still standing in the Dong Duong complex.

The site had been left unattended for years, exposing half-uncovered stone steles and piles of ruined bricks.

Reported by Truong Dien Thang