Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has assigned the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism to submit a brief report on the Oc Eo - Ba The relic site to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, proposing putting the site on the Tentative List.

At the Oc Eo - Ba The relic site (Source: baovanhoa.vn)

He assigned the People’s Committee of the Mekong Delta province of An Giang, where the relic site is located, to chair the process of building a dossier for the site.

The special national relic site of the ancient Oc Eo civilisation covers 433.2ha of land in Oc Eo township of Thoai Son district.

The Oc Eo civilisation, part of the ancient kingdom of Phu Nam, was first discovered by French archaeologist Louis Malleretin in 1942 via artefacts unearthed in the area of Ba The Mountain, now in Oc Eo township.

The civilisation, named after Mound Oc Eo in Thoai Son district where the relic site was first found, took shape and developed strongly in southern Vietnam between the first and seventh century.

Apart from Thoai Son, relics of the Oc Eo civillisation have also been found in other localities of An Giang province. There is a rich diversity of artefacts discovered so far, including those relating to religion, architecture, graves, and canals.

The Tentative List is an inventory of properties which States Parties consider to be cultural and/or natural heritage of outstanding universal value and therefore suitable for inscription on the World Heritage List..

Source: VNA