Friday, August 22, 2008
Co Loa Citadel
I recently paid a visit to Co Loa Citadel with my students. This is an important ancient site right outside of Ha Noi.
The citadel was built around 200 B.C. by one of the legendary kings of Viet Nam, An Dương Vương. He had a magic crossbow that could kill hundreds of soldiers at a time. Again, the turtle theme comes up, as the crossbow was given to him by a golden turtle.
The king had one daughter, My Chau. She married a Chinese general. Eventually, she told him about the crossbow and he was able to learn its secrets. With this weapon, the Chinese were able to conquer Viet Nam. In anger, An Dương Vương killed his daughter and her body was turned into a stone which is found in the temple today. A priest was telling my students the legend in detail. I wish I knew more Vietnamese!
The buildings on this site are very old and there is current archaelogical work going on in the area. Ha Noi is going to celebrate its 1000 year anniversary in 2010 and this site is due for a "face lift."
Labels: Vietnamese culture, Vietnamese history
