and the Museum of Sa Huynh - Champa Culture
Found at the very toe of the foothills southwest of Hoi An and Da Nang, this is a good example of a Cham site that has almost disappeared, and is now remembered by artifacts, artwork, and memory alone. Part of this is due to the natural decline of such sites over time, but the once great city of Tra Kieu had a rather sad ending as it saw it's own complete destruction at the hands of colonial invaders from Europe. Today the best visual evidence of this past empire can be seen at either the Da Nang Museum of Champa Sculpture in Da Nang, or the Sa Huynh-Champa Culture Museum, found right here in Tra Kieu, and it's interesting to hear the tale of Tra Kieu past and present.
Tra Kieu was originally laid down as early as the 4th century CE, and shows signs of being inhabited off and on for most of the next 800 years. The site is centered around a small hill that rises between the large Thu Bon River to the north, a small river the east, and one more river to the south, and it is thought that the city was serviced by an impressive series of canals, kind of like a Cham version of Venice. In the past a large tower stood on top of the hill, and the city laid at it's feet surrounding it between and amongst the rivers. To the west a small range of mountains rise, and there are much larger mountains behind. One a clear day you can see all the way to Son Tra and Hai Van Pass from the summit of the hill.
Tra Kieu was the first capital of the Cham Empire. Or, the first capital of what we would later think of as the Cham kingdom of "Amaravati"- roughly comprising the area between modern Hue and Quang Ngai provinces. This city was originally known as "Simhapura", or "The Lion City" in Sanskrit. This name is undeniably similar to a much more famous city of a very similar name- today's Singapore, or Singapura in Malay. These two names, Simhapura and Singapura are extremely similar, because the Malay name of Singapura is just an alteration of the Sanskrit name Simhapura. So, just as Malay culture was strongly influence by Hindu culture, so too were the Cham, almost even more directly so.
Many artifacts such as statues, products made of gold, and beautiful relief carvings have been found at the site, and just like the names, all of them show extremely clear influence from Hindu empires to the west. The statues are quite impressive, with beautiful and intricate figures carved into stone as part of design work (door frames, friezes, etc) or as standalone pieces. Many of these fine pieces have ended up at the Cham Museum in Da Nang, and they even have a room devoted to just Tra Kieu relics. In addition to the statues and relief carvings, there are religious artifacts such as a linga (a point of contact between the world of the gods and spirits and our mortal world) and a large naga serpent.
Although the city is quite a bit older than other Cham sites, it does follow the typical patterns of architecture: a tall tower, usually on a hill, with other smaller towers and buildings located below the primary tower. This design is seen in many places across central Vietnam, including Po Nagar in Nha Trang, Po Kloong in Phan Rang, and the sites in northern Binh Dinh. While the real number of people will never be known, it is thought that the city surrounding the hill and tower was quite large. This is thanks to a couple of low-lying walls that have remained and give an idea of just how big the actual temple site was. Using the size of this compared to other Cham sites that we know more about tells us that it was likely quite a population center, perhaps as many as 10,000 people. This certainly ranks up there in comparisons to other Cham cities, including My Son and Po Nagar.
While the city shared many characteristics with other Cham sites, it's thought that Tra Kieu differed from the nearby ancient city of My Son in it's primary function. At this point the research shows My Son to be much more of a religious epicenter, a fortified base of power for the religious leaders, kings, and emperors, safely tucked into an ultra-defensible valley in the mountains. However, given Tra Kie''s location on the river, amongst the canals, not far from the coast, suggests that it was much more of a business oriented city. Numerous objects of great value, made of gold and other precious metals, and jewelry and other objects of value from places far away have been found. It's clear that this city enjoyed a certain amount of wealth while it existed. Given the time frame in which it existed, that mean's it had access to trade routes and other markets.
Tra Kieu's history comes to a close some time in the 13th to 14th century. This coincides with an overall decline in the Cham empires everywhere, which was happening as a result of wars with neighbors both to the north and south. It's possible that the focus of the Cham in this area may have started here at Tra Kieu, but that center of society was later moved to My Son as it was more defensible and protected. It's hard to say with any kind of certainty, all we can do is imagine what may have happened given the little we know about it. However, the next chapter in Tra Kieu is where things take a bad turn for the city.
After the Cham left or were wiped out, the area was returned to the jungle and over time the sites of this and My Son fell into disarray in the jungle. Many of these sites, although abandoned, continued to be important and sacred to many of the people living in the local area. It was not uncommon for altars, lingas, and some statues to continue to be sites of prayer and worship. However, after the French came to Vietnam, some time in the 19th century the remains of the Cham tower were demolished, cleared off, and a new Catholic church was built on top. The rest of the complex and remains of the city were all razed and materials used to build new roads and new structures. Very little remains of the original site today thanks to the wholesale demolition at the hands of the French. Although most Cham sites have suffered the ravages of age or war, very few of them have been outright destroyed, so this makes Tra Kieu rare for an unfortunate reason.
This church, known as "Nha Tho Nui", or "Mountain Church", as well as the shrine below it, are indelible images of a legacy that remains to this day. Thanks to heavy conversion practices used by the French colonizers, many of the residents in the village immediately surrounding Tra Kieu remain Catholic. A large cathedral exists nearby, just off the turn for the Duy Son Road, and when asked, local residents in nearby villages confirmed that many people living here today at indeed Catholic. It's just another reminder that Vietnam has a sizable Catholic population; while the official government statistics say ~7% Catholic, it's widely thought that that number is likely much higher, closer to 15% or even 20%- 1 in 5- a fact that's not often remembered in this mostly-Buddhist country.
Today Tra Kieu is nothing but a modern place that happens to have a very interesting history. It's a bummer that the fate that has befallen the former city is so sad, but at least we have been able to understand what the city may have looked like and how it may have functioned when it was in it's prime. It's fortunate that numerous relics and artifacts from the site have been recovered and collected into the museums as well. While it's unlikely there will be excavations of the site in the foreseeable future, we must be grateful that we know what we do. And while there isn't a Cham tower there today, one can still go up to the church, on top of the hill, and get a great view of the surrounding countryside. When you do this, it's easy to understand why there was a city and tower here.
Just down the road from the church/former tower site, is a small museum just off the road. This museum, the "Sa Huynh-Champa Culture Museum", is small and doesn't have many artifacts. However, there are a few replicas of treasures housed elsewhere, and there are some decent maps of the Cham and Sa Huynh peoples and their respective ranges. There are also some original pieces, and some text panels that do provide a little bit of information. When I went it was free to enter, and it didn't take more than 10 minutes to stroll through. One of the best pieces is a large bas relief that depicts what the city may have looked like in it's early days.
Tra Kieu is very easy to get to. Take QL-1A out of Da Nang, or take Hung Vuong Street (that will turn into the DT-608) all the way to QL-1A. Follow the highway over the Thu Bon River, and then turn right at the signs for the My Son Ancient City. About 10 kilometers down the road is Tra Kieu. Watch for the signs on the buildings to say "Tra Kieu, Duy Xuyen, Quang Nam", and then watch for the "Mountain Church" on the left. Park here and walk up to see the church. The Museum is about 500 meters down the road further on the left. The cathedral is found by turning south just before this museum and going south 1 block.
All photos copyright Kit Davidson unless otherwise noted.
All maps copyright Google Maps.
All maps copyright Google Maps.