At Le Dai Hanh King Temple in Hoa Lu district, Ninh Binh province (Photo: dulichninhbinh.com.vn) The excavations are to be conducted on a total area of 600sq.m from September15 to December 31 this year following a decision by the Ministry of Culture,Sports and Tourism (MoCST) issued recently on its website.
According to the decision, the ministry has assigned Ninh Binh province'sDepartment of Culture and Sports in coordination with the Institute ofArcheology to unearth the two locations – a field south of King Le Dai Hanh Templeand a site near the wall of Thanh Den (Den Citadel) in Truong Yen commune, Hoa Ludistrict.
Dr Nguyen Ngoc Quy from the Institute of Archeology was assigned to presideover the excavations.
MoCST also said during the excavations, units granted licences to undertake thework should pay attention to protecting the stratigraphy of the relics and beresponsible for disseminating information to local people about the protectionof cultural heritage in the areas.
They should not announce any official archaeological conclusions or resultswithout agreement from authorities and the Department of Cultural Heritage, theMoCST said.
"Artefacts collected during the excavation must be transferred to Ninh BinhProvincial Museum for protection and preservation. The provincial Department ofCulture and Sports is responsible for receiving, managing, and reporting to theMinister of MoCST about plans to protect and promote the value of thoseartefacts," according to the ministerial decision.
After completing the excavation, the department and the Institute of Archeologymust make a preliminary report and propose a plan for management and protectionof the excavated area within a month and submit a scientific report within ayear to the MoCST, the decision said.
Workshop reviews archaeological research
Earlier in April, a workshop was held by the provincial Department of Cultureand Sports, the Institute of Archaeology, and the Vietnam Academy of SocialSciences reviewing archaeological excavation and research at the ancientcapital of Hoa Lu and other sites in Ninh Binh province.
Held as part of activities responding to the Visit Vietnam Year 2021,participants at the workshop lauded the results of the endeavour, saying it hadcontributed to preserving and promoting the values of cultural heritage in theprovince.
The excavation work revealed unique architecture at Hoa Lu, which vividlyreflects national construction and defence as well as royal cultural life, andthe formation and development of the locality’s administrative system duringthe 10th century.
Five excavation areas and three exploration pits on a total area of 300 sq.mwere studied, revealing architectural layers from the Dai La and Dinh – Le (earlyLe) dynasties.
At brick tombs in Nho Quan and Gia Vien districts, initial research resultsnoted that these were tombs from the Eastern Han Dynasty, proving thedevelopment of culture, economy, and politics and clarifying how Hoa Lu wasestablished and developed.
Research results initially recognised that the inner city of Hoa Lu in the 10thcentury had a much larger distribution area of architectural works than expertsand researchers previously imagined.
At the workshop, research and excavation units proposed adjustments to land useplanning and the detailed plan for the conservation - embellishment and promotionof specially-protected areas in the ancient capital, which were approved by theprovincial People’s Committee in 2009, to serve research, excavation, and conservationin the future./.
VNA
