One of the brick tombs discovered in Mao Khe

The tombs have been discovered in Mao Khe ward, Dong Trieu town on November 16 when a construction team was digging the foundation for a dyke near the gate of Sao Mai kindergarten.

The team detected the brick tombs, which have the dome architecture and arched spaces inside, about 2m under the ground. Diggers also found many bits of broken pottery pots with patterns. 

Right after receiving the information of the tombs, the construction was stopped and the site was handed over to relevant agencies for archaeological research.

Earlier, archaeological relic sites of ancient tombs in Mao Khe were excavated and researched for the first time in 1966. They were studied for the second time in 1972. 

The tombs were defined to date back from the time of the Han dynasty’s domination in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. They were constructed with bricks and have the same architecture with domes.

According to Tran Trong Ha, former Director of the Quang Ninh Museum, besides Mao Khe, many other ancient tombs were also discovered in Uong Bi city and Quang Yen town. The majority of them have similar architecture and construction material as those found in Mao Khe.

Many ancient tombs remain undamaged. Things kept inside the tombs, such as jewelries and potteries, are being preserved in the Quang Ninh Museum.

Initial information revealed that the two newly-discovered tombs in Mao Khe were all built about 1,800-2,000 years ago, the same as those found earlier in Quang Ninh, he said

As scheduled, the excavation of the two tombs near Sao Mai kindergarten in Mao Khe will take place from to 10 days.

Over the past years, Quang Ninh has made a number of efforts to preserve historical and ancient relics.

Recently, the Prime Minister approved a project worth 80 billion VND (3.57 million USD) on preserving the historical relic site where the famous Bach Dang victory took place 1288 in Quang Ninh northern province.     

The battle on the Bach Dang River under the leadership of General Tran Hung Dao took place at Dong Ma Ngua stake yard in Quang Yen town, which received the national historical site status in 2013.-VNA