Early completion of dossier to propose UNESCO to recognize Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site as a World Cultural Heritage

The Oc Eo Cultural Relic Management Board has just held a conference to deploy the work of building a nomination dossier for the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological relic site in An Giang province, to submit to UNESCO for recognition as a World Cultural Heritage.

Visitors at the Oc Eo Cultural Exhibition House. (Source: Culture Newspaper)

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At the Conference, Mr. Nguyen Khac Nguyen, Deputy Head of the Oc Eo Cultural Relic Management Board, said that the preparation of the dossier to nominate the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site for UNESCO recognition as a world cultural heritage was directed by the Party Central Committee, the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (VHTT&DL) since 2012 and 2013.

By 2021, the Prime Minister will have an official conclusion, assigning the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to guide An Giang province to preside over the construction of the dossier.

With the support of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Vietnam National Commission for UNESCO, the National Cultural Heritage Council and the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, the summary report of phase 1 of the dossier was completed and by April 1, 2022, the Oc Eo - Ba The relic site was officially included by UNESCO in the Tentative List of World Cultural Heritage dossiers.

After a lengthy preparation process, by the end of 2024, the project outline and construction budget were approved. The bidding procedures for the packages were completed and the implementing units were selected.

The conference announced the consortium of the Institute for Monuments Conservation - Center for Applied Geology, Heritage and Environment Research - University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Ho Chi Minh City National University) as the official contractor to win package No. 3: "Preparing nomination dossiers and management plans for the Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site in An Giang province to submit to UNESCO for recognition as a World Cultural Heritage".

The package will be implemented from April 2025 to January 2026. The work includes investigation, survey, systematization of documents, additional excavation, construction of a map of the distribution of relics and analysis of materials and artifacts... to clearly determine the outstanding global value of the relic.

The conference is also an opportunity for the parties to agree on tasks, sign contracts and implement detailed plans with a commitment to complete on schedule according to the urgent direction of the Prime Minister and An Giang province.

According to the Oc Eo - Ba The Cultural Relic Management Board, An Giang province strives to complete and defend the dossier to request UNESCO to recognize the Oc Eo - Ba The Archaeological Relic as a World Cultural Heritage by 2026.

This is an important step in the effort to preserve and promote the unique historical and cultural values ​​of the Oc Eo - Ba The relic site to the world.

The Oc Eo - Ba The archaeological site is located in Oc Eo town, Thoai Son district, An Giang province, about 40km from Long Xuyen city. The site covers an area of ​​433.2 hectares, including two main areas: Area A on the slopes and foot of Ba The mountain (143.9 hectares) and Area B in Oc Eo field (289.3 hectares).

This site has about 40 cultural relics of various types: religious architectural relics, burial relics, residential relics... discovered, explored, and excavated from the early 1940s to the present.

This is an archaeological complex reflecting the vestiges of an ancient urban area and religious center of the Kingdom of Funan. Domestic and foreign research shows that this area once flourished and was an important international trade and cultural exchange hub in history.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/som-hoan-thanh-ho-so-de-nghi-unesco-cong-nhan-di-tich-khao-co-oc-eo-ba-the-la-di-san-van-hoa-the-gioi-312052.html