On Tuesday, an awards ceremony was held by the Management Board of Da Nang’s Marble Mountains for a contest to create different designs for carvings of lions and 'nghe' (a fictional creature with the head of a lion, the body of a dog, and a long tail).  Both of them had to be imbued with the Vietnamese cultural identity.

The contest, which was launched in July, was open to carvers and production establishments in the city’s Non Nuoc stone carving village and to members of the municipal Fine Arts Association.  The entries were required to be made from marble, plaster or composite, and they had to be at least 80cm in height.

Carvings of 'nghe' on display at the exhibition

A total of 2 second, 2 third and 2 consolation prizes were given out at the awards ceremony.

Also on the same day, the 14 most outstanding sculptures created by the village’s production establishments were displayed at an exhibition in the office of the Management Board.

The exhibition aimed to help local residents, especially the local carvers, identify the carvings of lions and 'nghe' which best match the Vietnamese cultural identity, as well as introduce some new designs from which future sculptures might be copied.