ThanhHoa (VNS/VNA) - Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc hasapproved a plan to restore, preserve and promote the valueof the archaeological site of Con Moong Cave and othersurrounding relics in the central province of Thanh Hoa's Thach Thanhdistrict.

The plan includes all authentic evidence of the culturalevolutions of the ancient Vietnamese people on a total of 977ha ofthe historical site, including nearly 500ha and 478ha of protected and expandedareas, respectively.

The planning scope will cover about 776ha in the Thanh Yen communeand 201ha in Thanh Minh Commune in Thach Thanh district.

With focuses on exploiting and promoting the value of the relic for researchand education as well as increasing awareness and responsibility forpreserving cultural heritage, the plan aims to boostsustainable exploitation of natural resources in association withenvironmental protection; develop sustainabletourism contributing to poverty eradication; improvelocal people's lives and strengthen the local socio-economy. 

As part of the plan, projects building preservative spaces for each relicspot will be implemented to respect and ensure the originality of thecultural and historical values of the relic area.

According to the plan, the PM orders the preservative spaces should be built torepresent the relic's typical characteristics as a cave closely attached tosurrounding primitive forests and streams.

They should also ensure the protection of biodiversity and specialforest ecosystems of the Cuc Phuong National Park and the preservation ofexisting archaeological excavations.

The PMalso asked the project contractors to carry out additionalinvestigations and excavations before implementing constructionactivities to avoid impacts on other relic sites.

The restoration and conservation will be implemented on the relic sitesincluding caves of Con Moong, Lai, Diem, Ly Chu, Bo Giao, Dau VoiMountain and Moc Long Cave's rock roof.

The plan also includes spatial development following principles of naturaland free-style design to promote the relics' value withnew architecture ensuring harmony with the local landscape and caves.

Con Moong Cave was first excavated by Vietnamese archaeologists in1974 and the site was recognised in 2016 as a Special NationalArchaeological Site by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for itshistoric value.

A dossier on the cave is being compiled by Vietnamese experts toseek UNESCO’s recognition as a World Culture Heritage Site.

Discovered in 1974, Con Moong Cave has been excavated many times and wasdetermined to be the first site ever in the country containing traces of thecontinuous living process of ancient humans from the Paleolithic period to theNeolithic period.

This is the fourth site in the province to be recognised as a National RelicSite, following Lam Kinh Historical Site, Ba Trieu Temple and Ho Citadel. Thelast was recognised as a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

Con Moong (in ethnic Mường language “animal”) Cave located in Thanh Trung village,Thanh Yen commune, Thach Thanh district, is 147m above sea level.

The cave is on a karst mountain, which belongs to the Dong Giao geologicallayer dating back 240 million years ago.

The cave measures some 40m in length, with two gates on both ends. Inside thecave, the ceiling at some places is 10m high.

Since its discovery in 1974, the cave has been excavated four times.

The first excavation in 1974 explored a total area of 24sq.m. The findingsshowed the continuous development of stone working tools of the Stone Ages inVietnam.

In 2008-09, the cave was excavated the second time, while the next excavationswere carried out in 2010-13 and 2014./.