Dong Son Culture in First Ten Centuries AD

Dong Son Culture in First Ten Centuries AD
Trinh Nang Chung1
, Nguyen Giang Hai1
1 Institute of Archaeology, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
Email: [email protected]
Received: 24 February, 2017. Accepted: 17 March, 2017.
Abstract: Dong Son culture is the solid source and foundation of Dong Son vitality with abundant
resources both in terms of the material and spiritual aspects. Archaeological documentation has proven
that, after over 1,000 years of Northern (i.e. Chinese feudal states’) domination, the vitality of the
culture did overcome the fierce challenges of history. Moreover, it also enriched its own resources,
making use of the quintessence of the Chinese culture, and went on with incessant development.
Keywords: Dong Son Culture, Dong Son bronze drum, Northern domination.
1. Introduction
The period of the first ten centuries AD is
referred to by researchers as the period of
Bắc thuộc (lit.: belonging to the North, i.e.
being under the domination of the country in
the North, meaning Chinese feudal states). In
fact, the period of Bắc thuộc started nearly
two centuries earlier. In 179 BC, the land of
Au Lac (Vietnamese: Âu Lạc) Kingdom was
annexed into Nanyue (南越, Vietnamese:
Nam Việt) by Zhao Tuo (趙佗, Vietnamese:
Triệu Đà), after he conquered the kingdom.
Since then, Vietnam has been dominated by
the Chinese feudal emperors over various
dynasties, including the Western Han
(西漢), the Eastern Han (東漢), the Liu
Chao (六朝 – Six Dynasties), the Sui-Tang
(隋唐), until 938, when its people led by
Ngo Quyen won the historic victory in the
Battle of Bach Dang River.
During the period of over 1000 years, Viet
people enduringly carried out struggles
against the ruling yoke of the feudal dynasties
from China in all aspects, including the
struggles for national independence and for
the protection and development of its culture.
Based on archaeological materials,
typically some types of relics/sites such as
those of habitation, burials, ceramic kilns,
and especially archaeological artefacts such
as bronze drums, bronze and ceramic stuffs,
the authors analyse the long-lasting vitality
of Dong Son culture and its great impacts in
the Vietnamese history and culture.
2. Dong Son Culture as shown in types of
relics/sites
Relics/sites of habitation, burials and ceramic
production centres are the fundamental types
of relics/sites in the period.
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2.1. Sites of habitation
Very few materials on habitation sites
dating back to the period of the domination
still remain nowadays. However, our
understanding of the life of ancient Viet
people during the period has been
complemented by archaeological findings
in the land of the ancient Dong Dau and
Luy Lau area (Bac Ninh province).
2.1.1. Site of Dong Dau field
Dong Dau (Vietnamese: Đồng Dâu) field
lies on the alluvial plain of Dau River within
the area of Tri Qua commune, Thuan Thanh
district, Bac Ninh province. The ancient
town named Luy Lau was located across the
river. In 1986, an excavation conducted in
the area provided a lot of significant
findings with thousands of ceramic artefacts
such as household containers and cooking
utensils (pots and jars), eating and drinking
gadgets (bowls and plates), ceramic
production tools (763 sinkers), and other
iron, bronze and bony tools. The date of the
site is determined to range from the late 2nd
to the 7th century AD.
According to the research on the
cultural layers and artefacts, the excavators
suppose that Dong Dau was a site of
habitation of fishermen – the locals earned
their living by fishing. The site of Dong
Dau shows simple-mannered life of
ancient Viet people during the onethousand-year period of the domination.
And, after studying the rough grey and
rope-patterned ceramic artefacts from the
site, we have realised the existence and
development of traditional ceramics in the
proto-history of Vietnam [20, pp.251-253).
2.1.2. Habitation site in Luy Lau Town
Luy Lau (Vietnamese: Luy Lâu – 羸婁)
used to be a ruling headquarter of the Han
occupants in Giao Chi (Vietnamese: Giao
Chỉ) as well as an ancient Buddhist centre
during the period of domination.
For a long time, it was firmly believed
that inside the walls of Luy Lau were
mansions, offices and houses of the
Chinese feudal mandarins. Recent
archaeological research findings, however,
have provided us with new understanding.
By the end of 2014, eight excavations
had been carried out in the site of the
ancient Luy Lau citadel. Consequently, a
lot of new and valuable materials related to
the history and the citadel were unearthed,
which tell us that Luy Lau citadel is a
complex with various types of sites and
artefacts dating from different periods.
Luy Lau citadel was first built in the
beginning of the first century and, since
then, it had been continuously used and
repaired till the 10th century. The research
on the architectural materials on this site
shows that Luy Lau citadel experienced
large-scale construction twice, under the
Eastern Han dynasty and the Liu Chao (Six
Dynasties), and during the period of the
Sui – Tang dynasties. It had a large size
with a strong and advantageous structure.
It is highly probable that the citadel
consisted of three, or even more, ramparts,
not just two as we previously thought.
The test excavations outside the citadel,
next to the foundation of the southern
rampart provided us with a lot of artefacts
such as bricks, tiles, ceramics, bronze
coins, and animal bones, etc. The artefacts
Trinh Nang Chung, Nguyen Giang Hai
33
are of the same date as that of the citadel.
It is an area where houses and streets were
built on a large scale with busy production
and trading activities along Dau River.
Nearly one thousand pieces of casting
moulds of Dong Son bronze drums have
been unearthed so far. Most of them were
found in the cultural layer.
An excavation was conducted by the
Vietnam National Museum of History in the
inner citadel in late 2014, owing to which
thousands of valuable artefacts were found.
Remarkably, there were a wide range of
utensils such as bowls, jars, pots, vessels,
ink slabs, etc. made of glazed pottery and
terracotta, showing a site of habitation,
where both mandarins, intellectuals and
grassroots lived together over many
periods, including the times of Eastern Han
and the Liu Chao. The traces of a metalmaking workshop were discovered with a
large number of lead sinkers and spinningplumbs, revealing that local people did both
fishing and weaving.
The above-mentioned materials
demonstrate that there were residential
areas of commoners inside the ancient
Luy Lau citadel. Comparing the artefacts
with those found in Dong Dau field in
1986, archaeologists saw that they are not
much different from one another.
Interestingly, based on the artefacts, the
researchers who carried out the
excavation in 1986 arrived at the
conclusion that the lifestyle of people in
Dong Dau field was typical for that of
Viet people, and contrary to the Han-, or
Chinese-, style among those residing
inside the citadel. Yet, the excavation
conducted inside the citadel revealed that
there was hardly any difference in the
lifestyles of dwellers outside and inside
the citadel. This illustrates the presence of
numerous local (Vietnamese) people
inside Luy Lau citadel, who practised the
ancient Vietnamese lifestyle and constituted
the major resource for the existence of the
citadel [2].
The evidence of the habitation (and the
casting moulds of bronze drums) of
ancient Viet people in Luy Lau citadel
demonstrates the great vitality of the
Vietnamese culture in the very dwelling
place of the Han – Tang invaders.
2.2. Burials
There were two types of burials practised
in the first ten centuries AD. One is the
boat grave (or the tree-trunk coffins), and
the other is the brick grave (or the Han –
style grave).
2.2.1. Boat graves
It is also named the tree-trunk coffin.
Archaeologists have a relatively broad
consensus that the boat grave was
initially practised in the heyday of Dong
Son culture (from the 5th to the 3rd
century BC) and the authors of this type
of burial were ancient Viet people. The
boat grave is considered an important
cultural element of Dong Son people,
especially those who lived in the lowland
of the Red River Delta. The area, where
this burial type was practised, is narrower
than the area of Dong Son culture. By
now, the sites of Dong Son boat graves
have been found in 8 cities/provinces in
northern Vietnam.
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Concerning the date of boat graves,
most researchers suppose that this type of
burial appeared in Vietnam in the 5th and
4
th centuries BC. There are, however,
different opinions about its ending. Some
researchers assume that this type of burial
was finished in the 13th and 14th centuries
[16, pp.49-56] or under the Tran dynasty
and the Later Le dynasty early period.
Meanwhile, others assume that it was
continually practised until now [17,
pp.77-90], [5].
Bui Van Liem wrote that there were two
periods of the boat graves in Vietnam: The
first was at the same time with the
development of Dong Son culture (i.e.
from the 5th and 4th centuries BC to the 1st
and the 2nd centuries AD); thus, it is the
period of Dong Son boat graves. The
second period lasted from the 3rd and the
4
th centuries up to now. Additionally, Mr.
Liem noted that the boat graves in the
second period should be named in line
with the function and conception of the
owners so as to differentiate them from the
boat graves in the period of Dong Son
culture [11, p.184]. We agree with him and
suggest naming the boat graves in the
second period “the boat graves of the
Dong Son tradition”.
The materials of the boat graves have
made important contributions to
demonstrating the vitality of Dong Son
culture over the ups and downs in
Vietnam’s history. Some typical examples
can be cited as follows:
In around one or two centuries BC and
AD, the grave goods are mainly artefacts
typical of Dong Son culture, e.g. those in
the sites of Viet Khe, Chau Can, Chau Son,
Vu Xa, Nguyet Ang, Dong Quan, Dong
Lang, Thang Loi, Phuong Dong and Kiet
Thuong, etc. In the grave site in Viet Khe
(Thuy Nguyen district, Hai Phong city),
five boat-shaped graves were found, of
which the biggest one contained over 100
artefacts. Most of the artefacts are typical
bronze objects of Dong Son culture, such
as drums, jars, axes and daggers; and,
some of them were exotic and considered
to have been brought to the place as a
result of exchange.
Traces of the Viet – Han cultural
contacts are shown quite clearly by
materials found in the graves in Phu
Luong, Xuan La, Doi Son, Nghia Vu, Cua
Dinh, Tu Lac, An Thi, Minh Duc and
Tram Long, etc. In the grave site in Xuan
La (Graves No.3 and No.4) were found
typical artefacts of the late Dong Son
culture such as bronze jars, lances, axes
and plates as well as a lot of iron tools
and 43 coins dating back to the period of
the Eastern Han dynasty. In the site in An
Thi, archaeologists unearthed 200 coins,
most of which are Wu Zhu coins from the
dynasty. In the site in Phu Luong, found
were bronze kettles of the Eastern Han
style. Many of such artefacts were also
unearthed during the excavations
conducted in the lowland of the Red
River Delta.
In the site in Chau Can and the ancient
graves by To Lich River (Hanoi), the dead
are Lac Viet (Vietnamese: Lạc Việt) people
who chewed betel and had blackened teeth.
Inside a boat-shaped grave in An Khe
(Quynh Phu district, Thai Binh province)
was a woman, whose teeth were blackened
Trinh Nang Chung, Ngu