>> Five Hanoi locations honoured as national special heritage sites
Phu Dong temple was constructed during the Ly dynasty (11th–13th centuries) to worship Saint Giong, who fought the Yin invaders under the reign of the sixth Hung King (around 500 BC).
It houses 37 royal documents dating from the Le dynasty (1427–1789) to the Nguyen dynasty (1802–1945) as well as a number of treasured stone steles produced during the Le dynasty.
Speaking at the ceremony, district People’s Committee Vice Chairman Nguyen Ngoc Thuan called the recognition an honour for the locality, pledging that the local authorities will take practical actions to preserve and promote the relics’ value to domestic and foreign visitors.
The Giong festival, one of the most popular in the Red River delta region, is observed annually from the seventh to the ninth days of the fourth lunar month by villagers in Phu Dong, Phu Duc, Dong Vien, Dong Xuyen and Hoi Xa.
The festival highlights the ancestors’ fighting spirit against foreign invaders as well as the people’s aspiration for peace and prosperity.
This year’s festival includes a procession, chess matches, folk games and art performances.
