Museum of Chăm Sculpture – Đà Nẵng’s museum of the Champa Kingdom
Champa was an ancient kingdom existing from the 2nd to 19th century in central Vietnam. Their relics can be found across the region.
However, the Museum of Chăm Sculpture in Đà Nẵng is the place where you can find the most artifacts and information about this ancient kingdom in Vietnam.
Beyond its relics, the museum building is also remarkable for its historical and architectural value. You can even explore the Kingdom of Champa through virtual reality experiences here.
This is the museum with the most Cham relics
The aerial view of the museum
Image credit: Cham Museum
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture is one of the largest museums in Vietnam. This museum will help you deepen your knowledge about the history of the Champa Kingdom through its sculpture relics that were found across central Vietnam.
An exhibition section of the museum
Image credit: JAEHYUN BAHK
The museum is located on an area of 6,673 square meters, of which about 2,000 square meters are designated for exhibition spaces. It also houses about 2,000 artifacts related to the Champa Kingdom, which is also the largest collection of this kind in Vietnam. About a quarter of them are presented to the public here.
You may find 3 main exhibition spaces in this museum reflecting 3 main sites where the relics were found, namely Mỹ Sơn, Trà Kiệu, Đồng Dương, and Tháp Mẫm. In fact, these locations used to be political and religious centers of the Champa Kingdom. Additionally, the corridors are places where you can find artifacts from less significant relic sites.
The building was built more than a hundred years ago
The museum in the 1930s
Image credit: manhhai
Another thing that you may discover at this museum is the building itself. The building has a long history and is a unique structure combining both French and Champa architecture.
Back in the late 19th century, French scientists found so many relics related to the Champa Kingdom that they needed a place to keep them. At first, they gathered the relics at a site called The Tourane Park. With a lot more discoveries of relics, some truly huge, the scientists suggested building a museum on the site.
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture is a subtle combination of the Western Gothic style and the Champa tower motif.
Image credit: L’Espace d’Cao
The museum’s construction lasted from 1915 to 1919, based on the main design by French architects Delaval and Auclair. Despite the dominating Gothic influences, you can easily see the designs and details reminiscent of those of a Cham tower. Despite some looting before 1954, the museum has been well-kept and expanded during wartime.
Explore the Champa Kingdom through virtual reality experiences
Infrared light scanning and other modern techniques were used to capture the relics’ intricate details for the VR experiences.
Image credit: Andy Dao
Before going to the Museum of Chăm Sculpture, you can enjoy a virtual tour of this place. In fact, in September 2020, the whole museum has been scanned with infrared (IR) light and converted into 3D for virtual reality experiences.
With a pair of VR glasses and a click on the website of Danang Fantastic City, you can start your journey around the virtual museum. Along the way, some exhibits will also have vocal guides in English and Vietnamese. This tour currently covers 4 main exhibition sections of the museum.
Apart from the virtual reality experiences, you can also have a brief look at this museum on Google Arts and Culture.
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture is a top-ranked museum in Vietnam where you can find our country’s collection with the most relics, including some national treasures, from the ancient Kingdom of Champa.
Take a look at the relics virtually before you visit to broaden your learning too!
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture
Address: 2 2 Tháng 9 Street, Bình Hiên Ward, Hải Châu District, Đà Nẵng City
Opening hours: 7.30AM-11AM; 2PM-5 PM, Daily
Ticket price: VND60,000 (~USD2.61) per visit
Curator tours are available in Vietnamese, English, and French for groups of more than 5 people – please contact the musem at least 3 days in advance.
Telephone: 0236 357 2935
The Museum of Chăm Sculpture’s website | Facebook page
Also check out:
- Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary: Quang Nam’s magnificent Champa tower complex
- Óc Eo Relic Sites: Remains of the Funan Kingdom in An Giang
- Mằng Lăng Church: Home to the first modern Vietnamese script book
Cover image adapted from Cham Museum, JAEHYUN BAHK, and Andy Dao
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