January 18, 2018 | 22:18 (GMT+7)
Over 1,000 artifacts of My Son sanctuary go digital
More than 1,000 artifacts uncovered during the excavation and restoration of towers in the world heritage site of My Son sanctuary in the Central province of Quang Nam have been digitized thanks to the assistance of experts from Italy and India.
Italian experts have worked with technicians from the management board of the heritage site to digitize the artifacts, including statues, bricks and other objects used for the construction of towers.
Head of the management board Phan Ho said the digitization is one of the notable outcomes of international cooperation efforts to protect the world heritage site.
Apart from the assistance of the Italian Government, experts from India have been providing support to upgrade the towers, during which they discovered an underground road and many valuable objects, he added.
All newly-found artifacts will be digitized to make it easier for preservation and restoration, he said. My Son Sanctuary is located in a hilly landscape in Duy Phu commune, Duy Xuyen district, about 70km Southwest of Central Da Nang city and 40km from Hoi An city – another UNESCO heritage site in Quang Nam.
It comprises eight groups of 71 monuments built throughout the seventh - 13th centuries. The first construction of My Son dated back to the fourth century under the reign of Bhadravarman for the worship of God Shiva-Bhadresvara. But later on, the temple was destroyed.
At the beginning of the seventh century, King Sambhuvarman had it rebuilt and rebaptized Sambhu-Bhadresvara. Each new monarch came to My Son after his accession to the throne for the ceremony of purification and to present offerings and erect new monuments, which explains why My Son is the only place where the Cham art flourished without interruption from the seventh to 13th century.
Source: VNA