Visit Cham Museum when in Danang, Vietnam

Cham Museum in Danang, Vietnam

The best Danang tourist Attraction probably has to be the Cham Museum ( Bao Tang Cham). Founded in 1915 by the Ecole Francise d’Extreme Orient, the open air collection of Cham Sculpture is the finest in the world. Many of the sandstone carvings like altars, lingas, garudas, ganeshas and images of Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu are breathtaking; making this a museum you can visit again and again.

A trilingual guidebook, Museum of Cham Sculpture – Danang on the museum written by its director, Tran Ky Phuong, Vietnam’s most eminent scholar of Cham Civilization, provides excellent background on the art of Champa; it also includes some details on the museum’s exhibits, the book is usually on sale at the entrance.

It is well worth finding a knowledgeable guide to show you around and let you experience how great the history of Cham was, Vietnamese PackageTours offers daily tours and guide to visit Cham Museum.

The artifacts of the Danang’s Cham Museum, which date from the 7th to 15th centuries, were discovered at Dong Duong (Indrapura), Khuong My, My Son, Tra Kieu (Simhapura), Thap Mam (Binh Dinh) and others sites, mostly in Quang Nam and Danang Provinces. The museum’s rooms are named after the localities in which the objects displayed in them were found.

The four scenes carved around the base of the 7th century Tra Kieu Altar tell part of the Ramayana epic and are influenced by the Amaravati style of south India.

Scene A (16 Characters)
Tells the story of price Rama, who broke the sacred bow (Rudra) at the citadel of Videha thus winning the right to wed King Janak’s daughter, Princess Sita.

Scene B (16 Characters)

Shows the ambassadors send by King Janak to Prince Rama’s father, King Dasaratha, at Ayodhaya. The emissaries inform king Dasaratha of the exploits of his son, present him with gifts and invite him to Videha to celebrate his son’s wedding.

Scene C (18 Characters)
Shows the royal wedding ceremony including three of prince Rama's brothers, who are marrying three of Princess Siat's Cousins.

Scene D
11 apsaras heavenly maidens dance and present flowers to the newlyweds under the guidance of the two gandhara musicians who appear at the beginning of Scene A.

Getting to Cham Sculpture Museum

The museum, near the corner of D Nu Vuong and D Bach Dang, is open daily from 8 to 11 am and 1 to 5 pm. Admission fee is US$2.