The Da Nang People’s Council has already approved the investment policy for the construction of the branch of the Municipal Museum of Cham Sculpture located at a Cham relic site in Phong Le Village, Hoa Tho Dong Ward, Cam Le District. This not only brings good news to local residents but also brings great joy to those who love local culture and are interested in this 1,000-year-old relic. The city’s decision to spend VND 140 billion in deploying phase 1 of the project will facilitate research and conservation activities in this relic in addition to opening up bright opportunities for the area along the Cam Le River to promote its growth.

Many precious artifacts have been found through three excavations at the Phong Le Relic. In the photo: Artifacts which have been discovered at the Cham relic site were on display to celebrate its recognition as a city-level relic site in 2021. Photo: HA CHAU

Archaeologists have conducted three excavations in 2011,  2012 and 2018 at the Phong Le Relic. Valuable finds at this site included a statue of Sinha, or lion, Garuda legendary bird's head, an elephant-shaped altar, pieces of unique decorative patterns, and fragments of bricks.

Most notable amongst the amazing discoveries is the round, large sized statue of Sinha which was decorated intricately, especially in the abdomen and head. This special artifact has been added to a rich collection of exhibits on display at the Da Nang-based Museum of Cham Sculptures. Till date, through the excavations, archaeologists have discovered 2 special architectural features. One is believed to be the main tower which features a ‘scared hole’ that serves the religious activities of the Cham people. Remnants of this type of architecture have been only discovered at the Cam Mit relic site in group 3, Hoa Phong Commune’s Cam Toai Dong Village, Hoa Vang District, Da Nang, and at the Ponagar Cham Tower complex located in Khanh Hoa Province’s Nha Trang City.

The findings during three excavations clearly show that Phong Le Village and its surrounding areas are home to a complex of temples which play a particularly important role in the culture and history of the former Da Nang land, and Central Viet Nam as a whole.

These archaeological finds affirmed the fact that the Phong Le Relic is home to one of the ruins of Cham towers dating back to the 9th – 11^th centuries.

According to archaeologists, the artifacts found in the ruins of the main tower have created a breakthrough discovery for rare archaeological finds during excavations in comparison with those discovered in other sites.

Furthermore, a book named ‘Friends of the Hue Imperial Citadel’ compiled by a French author contains a lot of information about discoveries at ancient ruins in the riverside ​​Phong Le area. Before the Museum of Cham was established in Da Nang more than 100 years ago, the Phong Le relic had been a French plantation filled with Cham artifacts. These factors show that Champa cultural imprints found at the Phong Le Relic dates back thousands of years.

The city really needs an Open-Air Museum of Cham Sculpture to enrich its culture which has existed for thousands of years. Therefore, the Phong Le archaeological site is a "rare treasure" for the city’s historical culture.  A thousand-year-old relic found in the young city gives it the chance to encounter the sacred soul of the city in the past.

After many excavations, exhibitions and seminars, the Cham Phong Le Relic has been ranked as a city-level archaeological site in 2021. However, shortcomings in the preservation faced by this site include no measures to be taken to preserve archaeological finds and environmental factors influencing soil erosion here.

The project clearly identifies conservation priorities and cultural promotion in this site. In which, the first area which is the core of the relic with a total area of ​​more than 2,600 square metres will be designed as a conserving priority place while the second one will be the protection belt with an area of ​​more than 4,000 square metres. The second area includes towers, auxiliary items and their linkage systems, Ba Temple, and two ancient tombs, along with a protected wall, landscape and green space which will create a buffer zone to protect the relic.

The third area covering an area of ​​15,000 will feature lotus ponds, landscape and green space to offer a beautiful place to local residents and tourists to relax and entertain. This area will be considered as an important  'breathing space' for the city’s tourism development as it will be a perfect place to display the city's intangible cultural heritage, provide food services and drinking areas, as well as sell local traditional products.

Archaeological findings at the Phong Le Relic prove that the city is generally believed to have been the major religious center of the ancient Kingdom of Champa. The Cham Phong Le relic boasts great potential for tourism development. as the 1,000-year-old relic is readily accessible by road or waterways due to being located along the Cam Le River and close to a north-south arterial road. The most precious thing is that even though the relic is located in the heart of the city, its surrounding land fund is yet to be used that will provide opportunity for the city to develop this site into a tourist complex.

The city is in need of new tourist attractions in an attempt to renew itself to make it more inviting to both domestic and international tourists. The city is eyeing to open inland waterway tourism route in a bid to offer riverside tours and entertainment products. The city believes that one day visitors can take the Han River tour to explore the 1,000-year-old Cham Phong Le relic, visit the La Huong Vegetable Growing Area, and discover Thang Long Night Food Street due to many built-in advantages of this relic, and the city as a whole.

Reporting by HA CHAU – Translating by H.L