Ancient stone stele found at Thinh Duc communal house

With the help of local people, the Department of Culture and Information of Thai Nguyen City found an ancient stone stele at Thinh Duc communal house, Duc Cuong hamlet, Thinh Duc commune (Thai Nguyen City).

Thinh Duc Temple.

Thinh Duc Communal House was built over a century ago. The stele found is a monolithic green stone slab 70cm high, 45cm wide, 10cm thick, and weighs about 35kg. The stele's forehead is shaped like a semicircle, with a blooming chrysanthemum engraved on it, a pair of stylized phoenixes facing it on both sides, the stele's border is engraved with a large blooming chrysanthemum, and the stele's base is engraved with lotus petals spread out, looking very lively.

The inside of the stele is shaped, with 3 Chinese characters engraved on top, read from right to left: Hau bi ky (Erecting the stele to remember the posthumous election). The content of the stele is engraved vertically from top to bottom with 10 lines of Han Nom characters, each line from 15 to 17 characters. The characters on the stele are carved shallowly. The top of the stele is engraved with the place name: "Thai Nguyen province, Dong Hy district, Thinh Duc commune, village elder village chief..."; the stele records the names of some village elders and local officials who certified their merits for the village and were elected as Hau Than of the village. The year of the stele is engraved at the end of the stele: Bao Dai thap tu nien... (The stele was erected in the 14th year of Bao Dai - 1940).

In 2023, Thinh Duc communal house was listed in the Inventory of Monuments of Thai Nguyen City. In the context of traditional cultural values gradually being lost, the found stone stele is a valuable document.

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