Yesterday afternoon (18-12), Department of Culture and Information of Binh Dinh Province organized a meeting to report on results of the third archaeological excavation at the Purple Forbidden City - Emperor Citadel in Nhon Hau Commune, An Nhon District.

At the meeting, PhD. Le Dinh Phung, an officer of Vietnam Archaeology Institute directing the excavation, reported on new discoveries during the excavation.

Field work and excavation documents reveal that the Forbidden City built by Tay Son Dynasty is twice bigger than what was recorded in old historical documents. The original Forbidden City locates in a rectangular area, facing North-South with size of 312m x 126m (old believed size is 174m x 126m). Main gate faces South. At middle of the Forbidden City, a range of architectural buildings such as Nam Mon (Southern Gate), Cung Quyen Bong (Quyen Bong Palace), Lau Bat Giac (Octagon Estrade), Chanh Tam (Royal Bedrooms) and Hau Cung (Harem) were built along two sides of an invisible north-south direction axis. Building-to-building intervals are equal. Alongside of the main buildings, there are other subodinate works which are not found in the old documents. They include crescent-moon-shape lakes (symmetrically arranged along two sides of the Octagon Estrade) and snowbell-shape lakes, etc.

According to the old historical documents, the Forbidden City has only one gate at South. However, excavators find that there are at least three gates at East, West and South. A well-disposed sewage system within the Forbidden City as in a fully worked-out plan is also excavated.

• Reported by H.T
• Translated by To Uyen