Discovery of Collection of Moulds in Luy Lâu (Bắc Ninh): New Achievements in Research of Đông Sơn Bronze Drums in Vietnam

Tóm tắt

Between 2014 and 2019 the Vietnam National Museum of History carried out many surveys and excavations in collaboration with Japanese researchers of the Luy Lâu ancient citadel area. This was one of the earliest and largest metropolises in North Vietnam during the first ten centuries AD. A noteworthy point is that during the excavations in 2014 and 2015, archaeologists discovered hundreds of fragments of moulds lying in situ in the cultural layer that would have been used to cast Đông Sơn drums. This discovery provides convincing evidence that the drums were cast in the central region of northern Vietnam and this gives an opportunity to thoroughly understand the drum casting process of the ancient Việt people. The significance of this discovery is seen as greater research on the Đông Sơn drum technical manufacturing. In this paper, therefore, the author reviews research on the Đông Sơn drum casting technique, focusing on three main aspects: (1) drum casting methods; (2) alloy composition; and (3) casting experimentation. Based on the research background, comments are made on the significance of the discovery of moulds for casting bronze drums in the archaeological layer of the ancient Luy Lâu citadel, one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in Vietnam in recent years.