An Giang (VNA) – An international scientific conference was held in Rach Gia ward in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang on July 30, offering consultation on the outstanding universal value and nomination criteria for the local Oc Eo – Ba The archaeological site as a world heritage site.
The conference drew more than 40 distinguished domestic and international participants, including leading experts from India, Japan, France, Germany, Malaysia and representatives from Vietnamese ministries, the national cultural heritage council, UNESCO Vietnam Office, as well as academics and cultural management bodies.
Dr. Truong Dac Chien, a member of the advisory group for the building of the world heritage nomination dossier for Oc Eo – Ba The, shared key findings from recent excavations at the site and Nen Chua. These include temple architecture, stilt-house remains, wells and reservoirs built from stone, brick and wood, and traces of jewellery production using precious stones, glass, and gold.
He described the site as a significant historical and cultural "crossroads" linking ancient Southeast Asian kingdoms with regions in South Asia, Southwest Asia, and Northeast Asia.
Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Dao Cuong stressed the importance of the conference as a multidisciplinary forum to refine academic arguments for the nomination, in line with Vietnam’s broader efforts to preserve cultural heritage and assert its standing on the global heritage map.
Le Trung Ho, Vice Chairman of the An Giang People’s Committee, noted that the province has completed Phase I of the two-phase UNESCO nomination process.
The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has also deployed experts to conduct on-site evaluations in line with UNESCO’s protocols. An Giang aims to finalise and submit the complete nomination dossier by 2026.
Participating scholars focused on four key themes of the natural and historical context of settlement in the Mekong Delta; social organisation, early state formation and Oc Eo’s urban-trade systems; beliefs, religions, and material culture; heritage values, nomination criteria, and conservation strategies.
Oc Eo is widely recognised as a hallmark archaeological culture of southern Vietnam, dating back to the early centuries of the Common Era. The culture was first identified in 1944 by French archaeologist Louis Malleret, who named it after Go Oc Eo, the location in present-day Oc Eo commune, An Giang province.
Today, An Giang boasts over 80 Oc Eo cultural relics, with the Oc Eo – Ba The archaeological complex covering a designated conservation area of 433.1 hectares. Historically, the site served as a major urban centre, port, and economic-cultural hub of the ancient Phu Nam kingdom.
In 2012, the Vietnamese Prime Minister recognised the Oc Eo – Ba The as a special national relic site. On January 4, 2022, UNESCO included it in the tentative list for potential world cultural heritage inscription./.
