VietNamNet Bridge – The Saint Giong Temple will “expel” donated things that were not permitted by the cultural management bodies.

The iron horse.

The Saint Giong Temple, located in Phu Dong Commune, Gia Lam District will move an iron horse of 3m high, 2.5 tons in weight, an iron rod and an amour from the temple. These objects were donated by a company in Hung Yen province last September.

According to custom, on the 9th day of the lunar April, the Saint Giong Festival is held at the temple. During the event, villagers will perform the battles of Saint Giong against the foreign invaders, using two wood-made horses in white and pink color. However, some locals were recently surprised seeing a new iron horse in the temple.

The two original horses.

According to the Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the iron horse, the iron rod and the armor would have been expelled because they were not registered with the authorities and it was a violation to the Heritage Law.

Mr. Truong Minh Tien, the department’s deputy director, said the Saint Giong Temple is a special national relic so all new worshipping objects used in the temple must have the approval of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

At the same time, a screen with “odd” relieves in front of King Ngo Quyen Mausoleum in Cam Lam Village, Duong Lam Commune, Son Tay District was destroyed.

The iron rod and the iron armor.

Earlier, local villagers were upset with the screen, which was decorated with the relief of a “beast,” which was confirmed to be a “tiger” by the mausoleum restoration project developer.

In addition, two dragons on the two sides of the king’s tomb were also restored to the original color. Previously, they were painted colorfully.

The restoration project was conducted by the Office for Design Consulting and Construction Technology Transfer of the Hanoi Architecture University and Phuong Anh Construction Company. The design was approved by relevant bodies.

This is the latest example for the harmful effects of restoration of relics in Vietnam.

The screen with the "beast" relief was destroyed.

The colorful dragons were re-painted.

T. Van