Giang Duong Communal House

• Worshipped Figure: The communal house worships the village tutelary god King Le Dai Hanh (Le Hoan) - the first king of the Early Le dynasty.

• Legends and History: King Le Hoan was born in the Tan Suu year (941). He was originally a Tenth Route General of the Dinh dynasty and was enthroned by soldiers and the court when the Song dynasty threatened invasion. He personally led troops to defeat the Song invaders in the north (981) and pacified Champa forces in the south (982), firmly protecting the national borders. He was also the first to organize a plowing ceremony to encourage agriculture. The people of Giang Duong built the communal house to worship him in remembrance of his merits in building and defending the country.

3. Architectural and Artistic Characteristics

• Construction history: It was initially built around the Le period and underwent three major restorations in 1935, 1980, and 1998.

• Layout: The communal house is located near the foot of the Day River dike, facing west. During the resistance war, it was bombed and lost two side compartments but has now been restored. The current architecture follows the "Dinh" character plan, including the Dai Bai and Hau Cung.

• Dai Bai (main worship hall): It consists of 3 bays with 2 side wings, brick end walls, Vietnamese tile roof, and in the middle of the ridge is "Two dragons flanking the moon". The two central roof trusses are made in the "upper stacked beams and gong brackets, lower panel" style, and the two end trusses are in the "upper gong brackets and stacked beams, lower rafters" style. Notable relief carvings on the panels and beam ends include four-season flowers (pine, bamboo, chrysanthemum, plum), "old plum transforming into a dragon", and dragons carved in Le and Nguyen styles.

• Rear sanctuary: It consists of 2 bays, divided into an outer part (displaying a palanquin and sword rack) and a sacred inner part (where the throne and memorial tablet are placed), separated by two side doors and a stylized "Longevity" character.

4. System of Relics and Antiquities

• Royal edicts: The communal house preserves 06 royal edicts from various dynasties, including Canh Hung 28 (1767), Thieu Tri 06 (1846), and 04 under the Khai Dinh 09 reign (1924).

• Typical ritual objects: A gilded and lacquered altar canopy carved with "Two dragons flanking the moon", a horizontal plaque "Lam ha huu hach", 02 worship boards, 02 Chinese couplets, a set of stone Eight Treasures, a pair of stone elephants, and a palanquin.

• In particular, the communal house keeps a diverse system of incense bowls: 01 Tho Ha ceramic incense bowl from the Le period, 04 blue-and-white porcelain incense bowls from the Nguyen period, and 01 stone incense bowl from the Nguyen period.

5. Worship rituals

• Main festival: It is held every three years, from the 10th to the 12th day of the first lunar month.

• Rituals: The moc duc ceremony (bathing the palanquin, incense bowls, and edict box) takes place at 21:00 on the 9th day of the first lunar month. Offerings are vegetarian (glutinous rice). The ritual team consists of 20 officials wearing white trousers and blue ritual robes.

• Palanquin procession: This is a prominent activity: processions of the Lord's palanquin, incense bowl palanquin, and royal edicts from Giang Lang village communal house to Giang Duong and Giang Soi villages along the Day River dike, accompanied by dragon dances and water dances.

6. Protection work and zoning of the relic site

• Zoning: According to the record dated 11/06/2018 and the planning map, the competent authority agreed to delimit only Protection Zone I with a total area of 1,275.1 m2.

• Area distribution:

  • Area within the dike protection boundary: 333.7 m2.

  • Area outside the dike protection boundary: 941.4 m2.

• Boundaries: To the north it borders a concrete alley and residential land; to the south, cultivated land and the left Day River dike; to the west, gardens and the left Day River dike; to the east, gardens and Lac Canh pagoda. All construction and exploitation activities in this area are strictly prohibited by regulations.