VHO - The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has just issued Decision No. 1064 on allowing phase 2 archaeological excavation at the national relic of Lieu Coc Twin Towers, Huong Xuan ward (Huong Tra town, Hue city).

According to the decision of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, archaeological exploration and excavation work at the Lieu Coc Twin Towers will continue to be carried out by the National Museum of History and the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hue City.

The archaeological exploration and excavation will take place for nearly 2 months, from April 25 to June 20, 2025. The exploration and excavation will be led by Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Chat of the National Museum of History.

According to Decision 1064/QD-BVHTTDL, experts will excavate and conduct archaeological exploration on an area of ​​66m2. Of which, the exploration area is 6m2, including 2 holes x 3m2/hole. The excavation area is 60m2, including 2 holes: Hole 1 has an area of ​​50m2, Hole 2 is 10m2.

During the period of archaeological exploration and excavation, the National Museum of History and the Department of Culture and Information of Hue City need to pay attention to protecting the stratigraphy of the relic; have the responsibility to propagate to the people about the protection of local cultural heritage. Do not announce the official conclusion without the agreement of the competent authority and the Department of Cultural Heritage.

The units responsible for preserving and maintaining artifacts collected during archaeological exploration and excavation must avoid damage or loss and report to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism on plans to protect and promote their value.

During the archaeological excavation at the Thao Doi Lieu Coc relic in 2024, specialized units determined the ground plan, scale and structure of the North tower temple architecture; determined the location of the Gate tower, the Fire tower, the eastern wall system and the path connecting the South tower to the North tower.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Chat, Deputy Head of the Collection Research Department, National Museum of History, said: Lieu Coc Twin Towers is different from Champa temple towers in Central Vietnam because it only has two main towers. The archaeological results in 2024 only identified two main towers in the relic, with no sign of a third tower.

During the excavation in 2024, the archaeological team also discovered and collected a large amount of relics with 4,807 specimens. The main focus was on architectural materials, architectural decorations, stone stele fragments and reliefs, glazed ceramics, porcelain, earthenware and metal coins.

In particular, there is a relief of a Buddha head made around the 11th - 12th century; 3 Champa lime pots from the 9th - 11th century are still relatively intact...

According to the representative of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hue city, conducting the second phase of archaeological excavation at the Lieu Coc Twin Towers relic is necessary to clarify more information and have a more complete understanding of the relic. From there, it will be the basis for building solutions to preserve and promote the value of the national relic Lieu Coc Twin Towers in a long-term and sustainable manner.