With the approval of the MOCST, the VNMH Museum has collaborated with the University of East Asia (Japan) and the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Bac Ninh province to implement excavations on the Luy Lau Citadel in Bac Ninh province (from 10/11/2014 to 5/1/2015). Within a short period of time and many efforts, the group of experts has found many important evidences.
Thus, in the morning of the December 30th, 2014, the VNMH Museum organized a seminar to release the preliminary results of the above research and excavations.
It was attended by the archaeologists and cultural experts from Vietnam and Japan including:
Dr. Nguyen The Hung – Director of the Department of Culture and Heritage (MOCST); Assc.Prof.Dr Nguyen Lan Cuong – Vice Head of Vietnam Archaeology Association; Dr. Nguyen Van Cuong – Director of the VNMH Museum; Assc.Prof.Dr Hoang Van Khoan – University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Assc.Prof.Dr Han Van Khan - University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Assc.Prof.Dr Lam Thi My Dung – Director of Anthropology Museum, University of Social Sciences and Humanities. Representatives from Japan were Prof. Huang Xiao Fen - University of East Asia, Japan (Head of the group), Prof. Ichinose Kazuo - Kyoto Tachibana University, Prof. Kinoshita Yasuaki – Institute of Japan Studies.
Dr. Nguyen Van Cuong – Director of the VNMH Museum addressed an opening speech
In her report, Dr. Huang Xiao Fen (Head of the Japanese group) said: "In those excavations, our biggest achievement is that we have worked out the scale and the citadel's internal structure and the construction time of the citadel".
Based on the research's data secured during the 40 days excavation (27/11 to 28/12/2014), the reports for the Luy Lau Citadel focused on the following issues:
1. The panorama of the Luy Lau urban area:
The Luy Lau Citadel was built on the bank of the Dau River and surrounded by a vast plain. A relic called Bai Pha Ho was found 5km away to the north east speculated to be a river port city. Besides, a bigger resident complex or a river port city was situated 4km to the west of the Luy Lau citadel called Sen Ho complex. Both above cities were important centre of trading and water transportation of the Luy Lau Citadel in Jiaozhi. In brief, Luy Lau was a commercial city with two resident complexes and with the river port within a radius of 5 km.
2. The structure and date of Luy Lau:
Luy Lau had two parts: Outer and inner citadels.
The outer citadel:
The survey has defined the structure of the Luy Lau citadel that faced North. It was constructed in a way similar to the Han Chinese's capital of Chang An/Luo Yang.
The inner citadel:
The team has excavated 3 sites at the inner one and found:
a. Found the wall of the inner citadel to the East.
By digging the wall to the east of the inner citadel and studying the soil layers and relics, we have concluded that the wall was constructed in two separated periods of time: Nanzhao time (4th – 6th century) and Dong Han - Three Kingdoms time (2nd – 3rd century). Besides, a brick layer was found to be built under the wall by the bricks of different sizes and patterns, proved that the time of construction was various.
b. Found the bound of the inner citadel to the South and the palace's architectural relic.
To check the soil layers and find the location of the inner citadel, the team had to expand some more holes. By studying the changes of the soil layer, we have determined the southern bound of the inner citadel. Through the yellow-brown soil layer of the Sui, Tang dynasties, an architectural trace for a Sui Tang palace has been detected.
c. Found the northern wall and the northern gate of the inner citadel
The team has pointed out the location and date of a segment of wall in the north and the gate. The wall was made through 4 periods of time, including:
- The relics dated from Han to the Three Kingdoms found in the soil mixed with ash (1st – 3rd century).
- The relics dated Nanzhao period found in the yellow brown soil mixed with the white clay (4th – 6th century).
- The relic dated Nanzhao and Sui, Tang dynasties found in the grey soil layer (6th – 8th century).
- Through the cultivated land in the modern time.
The discoveries in the above archaeological cultural layers have proved the fact that Luy Lau city was at Jiaozhi district and now it's remaining is at Thuan Thanh, Bac Ninh province. It was developed from Han to Sui, Tang dynasties.
The master plan of the excavation on Luy Lau citadel
d. At the first time, the samples of casting mould of the Dong Son drum have been found in large quantity.
On the way to discover the foundation of the wall, we have opened some more holes nearby the place where Nishimura Masanari found the casting mold of the bronze drum in 1999. There we came across a number of Dong Son bronze drum's casting molds in terracotta; the funnel for pouring the melted copper and the axle of a turning table. Such things were defined to date back to the 4th century. This discovery reveals a casting process of the bronze drum and it helps to confirm the Dong Son drums were an aboriginal product of Vietnam.
3. Researching the brick tomb cemetery in the eastern Luy Lau citadel:
The eastern Luy Lau was a big cemetery of bricks tombs distributing in a large area. There still exist 32 brick tombs that dated back East Han and Sui Tang dynasties and they had the design and the technique of the native culture.
Studying the Vietnamese history from the 1st to the 10th century is targeted by the VNMH Museum, particularly studying the ancient citadel of Luy Lau. The above results have placed many issues on history and archaeology, and furthermore, the issues of anthropology, ethnology and trading relations of Vietnam in the period of Chinese domination and the struggle for the independence.
Some relics found during the excavations
Thu Nhuan
EN: Tran Trang