Dr. Nguyen Viet

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Ethnobotanic Study 2005 in a Muong hamlet (Kim Boi, Hoa Binh)

A ramie cloth fragment excavated from a Dongsonian dugout log coffin in Chau Can burial field (Ha Tay, Vietnam)

During excavation 2004 in Du Sang rock-shelter ( Kim Boi, Hoa Binh)

The dongsonian bronze drum excavated in burial field Dong Xa (Kim Dong, Hung Yen, Vietnam) in detail.

Skull at Bach Dang poles excavation

DrNguyenViet.com > News > Discoveries

The Bronze Figures of Negritos found in archaeological site of Dong Son (Thanh Hoa, Vietnam) and in Sa Thay (Kon Tum, Vietnam) [6/17/2012]

Mysterious messengers

Photos and story by Dr. Nguyen Viet

Two strange bronze statues were discovered in Dong Son village, in Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa province. For decades, these images fascinated and perplexed archaeologist Dr. Nguyen Viet. And then, in late 2009, he discovered a third statue.

Some three millennia ago, an advanced civilization arose around current-day Dong Son village, in Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa province. Famous for its elaborately carved bronze drums, this civilization became known as the “Dong Son civilization”, after the village where many artefacts were uncovered.

While most relics unearthed in Dong Son village were made by the Dong Son civilization, a strange statue was also unearthed there. Made in a wax lost mould, this human figure was unlike any art work made by the Dong Son civilization. Researchers wondered where this strange statue had come from.

The first broze figure of Negritos found 1970 in the archaeological site of Dong Son (Thanh Hoa, Vietnam)

The 12cm-tall statue depicts a curly-haired male with protruding eyes and bulging lips. On each cheek are two lines, similar to the patterns favoured by some native groups in America. The statue’s naked body is standing in a strange position with the right foot extending straight down and the other foot supported by the left hand in an upright position. The right hand seems to work with the left hand to cover the foot. The statue’s penis is oversized. Technical marks are visible on the statue, such as a spiral pour-hole at the groin. The way that the nails are polished, the lines on the neck and waist, and the dotted curly hair mark this statue as distinct from other ancient art pieces discovered in Viet Nam and the rest of the world.

In 1987, ten years after a photo of this strange statue appeared in Archaeological Magazine, an old man from Thanh Hoa province brought a similar statue to the Institute of Archaeology in Ha Noi. He recounted how the statue had been found in his garden in Dong Son village.

This second bronze statue depicted a female. It was in very good, intact condition. The face showed deep, African-looking features with thick lips and protruding eyes. The cheeks bore two lines, like the male statue. This female statue bore oversized breasts. As the two statues are identical in artistic style and production techniques, it is clear that they are a set. The female looks up to the sky. One hand covers her face, while the other hand covers her groin. Interestingly, the female statue’s private parts fit into the hands and foot of the male statue.

The second figire of a negrito girl found 1987 also in the archaeological site of Dong Son (Thanh Hoa, Vietnam). Here is plastic doublicate.

Thirty years ago, when I travelled to Germany for my post-graduate studies, I brought photos of these two statues. I took the images to international conferences and visited hundreds of museums all over the world in search of answers. The solution came to me in a way that I could not believe, the answer opening a path that points to one of the most mysterious interactions of prehistoric times. It turned out to be one of the most important discoveries of my 40 years as an archaeologist.

In the fall of 2009, when I was making a trans-Viet Nam field trip, I stopped in Chau O town in Quang Ngai province to view the antique collection of Mr. Lam Du Xenh. After working with his collection for one week, I was on my way to my car, when Mr. Xenh called me back : “Professor, wait! You should come back and see this,” he said. I returned and he showed me a small bronze statue. I could not believe my eyes. The statue shows a black man with curly hair, thick lips, prominent eyes and decorative lines on his cheeks. A wax moulding technique was used to make this image. The statue shows a naked man squatting and is about 11 or 12cm high. Locals had broken off both of the hands and the penis to test whether the statue was made of gold. It is easy to see the resemblance between this statue and the two others from Dong Son village. This one has two spiral pour-holes at the feet. The face is identical to those of the others. I could not contain my joy at this discovery.

The third figure of a negrito man found in the begining of 1980 years in Sa Thay (Kon Tum, Vietnam)

Mr. Lam Du Xenh maintained a small altar at which to pray for luck and safety before embarking on any journey. He had placed this statue in a small box in front of his altar. Every time he prepared for a long trip, he would light incense and pray before it, rubbing its head. When he returned, he would offer incense and place the statue in its former position.

During the week that we had worked together, I had shown Mr. Xenh my photos of the Dong Son statues. He hadn’t put two and two together. But as I was preparing to leave, he had offered incense to his lucky statue, as was his habit before he or his friends took a journey. Suddenly, he had seen the link. And so, he had shown me his precious statue. The joyful moment that I saw this statue was the pinnacle of my entire professional life.

Mr. Xenh told me about his introduction to the statue. In the early 1980s, while Mr. Xenh was in his twenties, he had joined many other youth volunteers in Binh Son district of Quang Ngai province. They were working in the battlefields along the Southwest border. Mr. Xenh’s division was dispatched to the Sa Thay region of Kon Tum province next to the border with Cambodia. One of his friends was given this statue by a local who had found it while working in the fields. Mr. Xenh’s friend then died of illness in Sa Thay. The statue was inherited by another member of his unit. Years later, upon learning that Mr. Xenh collected antiques, this man had given the image to him as a memento of their war years. Mr. Xenh viewed the statue as a lucky talisman.

I set out to learn the origins of these mysterious messengers that were found in Dong Son. In Southeast Asia today there are still some ethnic groups with dark brown skin and curly hair, like the Semang people in Malaysia. Could these people have once formed strong kingdoms on mainland Southeast Asia and created such lively statues?

This spring, in the month of March 2012, some colleagues and I will meet in Sa Thay and its vicinity in the hopes of discovering more traces of the people who left the mysterious statues unearthed in Dong Son.

Photos and story by Dr. Nguyen Viet