The Banana Garden site and lessons...

After a long and arduous journey, at times seemingly wiped out without the decisive intervention of experts, researchers and the press, the Vuon Chuoi archaeological site has now been legally "identified"; " sovereignty " has been affirmed with protected, inviolable areas, so that in the future, the typical, rare values from thousands of years of history will be highly promoted.

The Vuon Chuoi archaeological site has undergone 11 explorations and excavations since its discovery 56 years ago, with different scales and areas, and has been unanimously assessed by experts: This is one of the typical and rare archaeological sites of the Bronze Age in Northern Vietnam; and is an ancient village on the land of the capital of a thousand years of civilization, continuously developing through many important cultural stages, from about 4,000 years ago until the 1st-2nd century AD.

Possessing such outstanding historical, cultural, ethnic, archaeological values, etc., decades ago, the authorities and local governments lacked attention and laxed management, causing the Vuon Chuoi site to be partly forgotten and partly seriously violated. The relic seemed to be outside the legal corridor. Then, 15 years ago, the Vuon Chuoi site faced the risk of being completely erased when it was included in the urban residential area planning. In 2017, Hanoi city approved the project to build Ring Road 3.5, the Vuon Chuoi site was divided into two directions...

Without the fierce protection of experts and researchers through urgent petition letters; the unanimous "cry for help" of the press, media and especially the raising of awareness of functional agencies and local authorities..., the Vuon Chuoi archaeological site would have been "terminated". But now, the Vuon Chuoi site has been clearly positioned in the legal corridor, specifically here the provisions of the law on cultural heritage.

Through the story of the Vuon Chuoi site, we can see many lessons to be learned. First of all, the cultural heritage left by our ancestors needs to be promoted in the way we behave, accordingly, there must be measures to protect, preserve and promote its value. As soon as the historical, cultural and scientific values are relatively fully identified, the authorities and local governments need to coordinate with experts to appraise, evaluate and carry out ranking procedures, so that the relics can be protected by legal means.

In the process of planning and constructing traffic and urban infrastructure, consulting units and competent authorities need to conduct investigations and surveys of the current situation, coordinate with experts, researchers and managers to take measures to promote the value of the nation's cultural heritage, and minimize the impact on the integrity of relics and heritage. And finally, we need to fully implement the provisions of the law on cultural heritage, not allowing the situation where cultural heritage has to be "conceded" to infrastructure and urban projects...

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/di-chi-vuon-chuoi-va-bai-hoc-180434.html