Binh Thanh Tower is an architectural masterpiece from the Oc Eo culture, dating back more than a thousand years. The tower not only stands out in its architecture, but also has profound historical and cultural value, making it a tourist destination in Tay Ninh that attracts many culture lovers to explore.
General information of Binh Thanh tower
Binh Thanh tower (Vietnamese: tháp Bình Thạnh, thasp), also know as Binh Thanh Cham Tower, is one of three typical architectures representing the remaining Oc Eo culture in the South that still exists today. This is an ancient tower built in the 8th – 9th centuries, and is now more than a thousand years old. The overall area of Binh Thanh tower consists of three buildings, but only the main tower remains intact.
This is the only tower with stone walls that have remained almost intact since it was first discovered in 1886. It is also a rare architectural heritage of the Oc Eo culture that still retains its original construction design, two other towers have collapsed, leaving only ruins on the square foundation.
Besides, Binh Thanh ancient tower also contains many traditional cultural values, religions and beliefs of the ancient Funan people. Typically, the patterns and reliefs embossed on the tower, mostly images of stylized flowers, gods, vitality… was popular images in Hinduism, worshiped by Funan people.
Not only that, the discovery of the ancient tower further confirms that the land of Tay Ninh since ancient times has been a focal point for trade and exchange of many great cultures, a place with a long history before the Vietnamese people set foot in Tay Ninh in the 17th century.
Binh Thanh tower were officially discovered through archaeological reports at the Indochina archaeological research library in the early 20th. It was recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism as a Cultural-Historical Monument in 1993.
Sophisticated and unique architecture at Binh Thanh tower
Binh Thanh Tower is located on a high mound, in the middle of a large rice field in Binh Thanh commune, Trang Bang district. Similar to the Champa tower temples in the Central region, this ancient tower was built by stacking stone slabs and fired bricks, without any adhesive in the middle. This construction technique is still a big question for archaeological scientists.
The main gate of the tower is located in the East, 2m high, 1m wide, carved with reliefs on the walls. Above the main gate is a rectangular stone slab 0.8m high and 2m wide carved with a sophisticated and skillful stylized chrysanthemum. The remaining doors of the tower are all fake doors carved with elaborate patterns. To understand the details of this unique architecture, visitors can hire a tour guide to explain about Binh Thanh tower.
Thus, visiting Binh Thanh tower, visitors will be able to see the unique and meticulous construction techniques that have been lost for thousands of years along with the cultural and historical values of the nation over the years. This is a definite destination that should not be missed when traveling to Tay Ninh.
How to get here?
Tourists from the Northern and Central provinces who want to go to Tay Ninh need to take a flight to Ho Chi Minh City first. Flights to Ho Chi Minh City will depart from big cities such as Hanoi, Hue, Da Nang…, then visitors can go to Tay Ninh to visit Binh Thanh Tower by one of the following means of transport by local bus or motorbike.
If you want to explore the tower by driving by yourself, from the center of Tay Ninh city, you go along Highway 22B towards the center of Go Dau district, to the intersection of Voi hamlet (Ben Cau district), turn right to enter Road 786. From here, you run about 20km more. You will see a turn leading to the ancient tower.
sample of 7-seater car to Tay Ninh
Don’t forget the best way, especially when you travel with a group is booking a private car to Tay Ninh with driver as it easy for sightseeing and stop on the way for relaxing.
Address: Bình Phú Hamlet, Bình Thánh Commune, Trảng Bàng District, Tây Ninh Province.
Tourist spots near by: Bà Đen Mountain (Black Virgin Mountain), Dầu Tiếng Reservoir, Cao Đài Temple…
Source: collected by An
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