In October 2007, I have had the opportunity to visit the archaeological site of the Palace of Nam Viet, situated at the center of the city of Quang Chau, province of Kuangtung (China). The site has undergone an excavation of 16.000m 2 , and will undergo 4000m 2 more for the needs of research. The excavation yard is open since nearly ten years, reassembling a lot of chinese archaeologists, but until last year has issued no report, except a single paper presenting summarily the site, on occasion of a very modest exhibition, mainly at the service of visiting researchers.
In October 2007, I have had the opportunity to visit the archaeological site of the Palace of Nam Viet, situated at the center of the city of Quang Chau, province of Kuangtung (China). The site has undergone an excavation of 16.000m
2, and will undergo 4000m
2 more for the needs of research. The excavation yard is open since nearly ten years, reassembling a lot of chinese archaeologists, but until last year has issued no report, except a single paper presenting summarily the site, on occasion of a very modest exhibition, mainly at the service of visiting researchers. The work of rearranging is done in parallel with the excavation, the site appearing at the same depth as that of the center of the Royal Palace of Thang Long - Hanoi. A rather solid roof covers 16.000m
2. The water pomp operates continuously, against the threats of underground waters.
The cultural layer is rather thick, stretching from the time of Nam Viet to the time of the Republic. Here one finds architectures of different times which were superposed, wells, systems of water evacuation, gardens with miniature rocks, which my colleagues have presented me and which I difficultly imagine. Nevertheless, I find that this site is rather analogous to that of the no 18 Hoang Dieu of Vietnam in all points of view: character, extent, localisation, repartition, earth layer… The branch of chinese patrimonies and the authorities of the province of Kuangtung have decided to transform the whole area of 20.000m2 into museum in open air, as well as the tomb of Nam Viet Vuong, to make a complexe of sites at the service of visitors, though this were situated in a place where the land is very expensive - the Trung Son street, surrounded with sky-scrapers. China is establishing documents for UNESCO to acknowledge the palace of Nam Viet Quoc as mundial culturel patrimony.
To say the truth, the center of the Royal Palace of Thang Long - Hanoi is in no way inferior to the site of the Palace of Nam Viet Quoc, only Thang Long has not been invested to its true value, whileas the two sites have been discovered at random, without premeditation.
The time devoted to the rearrangement and to write a report on Thang Long is still too short. The roof and the equipment for the conservation of Thang Long are still provisional. The material basis for the study of Thang Long is poor. The concentration of multibranch knowledge, the narrowing or the conservation of this site as it was has not been decided… these are extremely sensible factors which will be difficulties for the center of the Palace of Thang Long to compete with other sites to be acknowledged by UNESCO as cultural patrimony of humanity.
We hope that, when the Valuation Council of UNESCO comes to visit the Royal Palace, all the problems have been solved, and Thang Long - Hanoi will win the priority, since the international community wants to reserve this gift to Vietnam on occasion of the millenium of Thang Long - Hanoi.
Pham Quoc Quan