Ancient cave cemetery unearthed

[L Roebuck]

Ancient cave cemetery unearthed in northern province

A cemetery discovered in a cave revealed ancient coffins in a Thai ethnic community located in northern Thanh Hoa province, the local people’s committee said Thursday.

The cave-cemetery has total 74 coffins, all of which were sophisticatedly carved from the trunks of large trees.

The cave entrance was narrow and sloped cliffs made it difficult to gain access, but the coffins were arranged in sequence according to size, with a solid wooden support system.

So far no carbon dating analysis has been conducted to certify the age of the ancient cemetery.

Thanh Hoa province has long been considered as one of the main areas of habitation for Vietnam’s ancient civilizations.

Full Article:
Source: Tuoi Tre – Translated by Thanh Tuan

[L Roebuck]

Centuries-old coffins rotting at ancient burial site

A cave containing 200 centuries old wooden coffins in the northern province of Thanh Hoa may be irreparably damaged unless it is preserved soon by archaeologists, says a local official.

The cave is hidden in a dense forest near the top of a high rocky mountain at a spot where the Luong estuary merges into the Ma River in Hoi Xuan Commune, about 140 km away from Thanh Hoa City.

The local ethnic Thai people have never understood the purpose of the "ghost valley", or Lung Ma, as they call it.

The coffins, made from tree trunks split in half that have been hollowed out to fit an adult, have two round ends that resemble a boat.

At each end of the coffin is a carrying handle, with both parts glued with resin. The coffin is placed vertically on a man-made plat form in the cave.

However, all of the coffins are now in disrepair and are no longer intact.

Full Story: english.vietnamnet.vn/social/2006/07/587658/