CHAMPA AND THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF  (VIETNAM). ED. BY A. HARDY, M. CUCARZI AND P. ZOLESE. Singapore: NUS Press, 2009. XXXIV, 440 p., ill.*

The archaeological study of Vietnam, initiated by the French School of the Far East (École Française d'éxtrême-Orient) at the dawn of the twentieth century, received an additional impetus for development after the emergence of the national archaeological school. One of the most mysterious countries of pre-colonial Southeast Asia was located in Central Vietnam, Champa. Its greatest monument - the Michonne Temples and Towers - was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. At the same time, UNESCO, the Italian Lerici Foundation (Lend Foundation), the Politecnico di Milano and the Institute for Conservation of Monuments of the Ministry of Culture of Vietnam (Institute for Conservation of Monuments, Ministry of Culture, Hanoi) launched the "Michonne Conservation Project", which lasted ten years and yielded significant scientific results. Their publication is the subject of a peer-reviewed monograph.

The book consists of an introduction, a preface, an introduction, three initial chapters on the archaeology of Champa and Michonne, and two main parts: Champa (six chapters) and Michonne Archaeology (1997-2007) (ten chapters). A bibliography and index have been added to this list.

The book opens with an introduction by A. M. Cordella, Italian Ambassador to Vietnam, and a foreword by R. A. Engelhardt, UNESCO Regional Adviser for Culture in Asia and the Pacific. A scientific introduction to the intricate problem of building tower temples is provided by E. Hardy. The widespread belief that these buildings were fired from bottom to top is unequivocally rejected, as the data obtained by the Michonne Conservation Project indicates that the bricks were held together with a mortar consisting of organic Dipterocarpacea alata resin (local fishermen still use it to tar their wooden boats), limestone powder, brick chips and water. The key question, "why was Michonne built?", according to Hardy, can hardly be solved with the current level of knowledge.

The first three chapters are devoted to the history of studying Champa monuments. In the first of them, P. Baptiste describes the activities of the French researchers A. Parmentier and S. Carpeaux, who studied Dongziong and Michon at the beginning of the XX century (p. 14-25). In the second chapter, Hoang Dao Kin describes the work of a joint Vietnamese-Polish expedition led by K. Kwiatkowski in 1980-1986, which for the first time undertook restoration work on the monuments of Michaud-

Champa and the Archeology of Michonne (Vietnam), ed. by E. Hardy, M. Kukartsi, and P. Dzolese. Singapore: National University of Singapore Publishing House, 2009. XXXIV, 440 p., ill.

The author of the review expresses his deep gratitude to A. A. Sokolov for his advice on Vietnamese onomastics and toponymy.

for the treatment of anastylosis ¹. In the third chapter, P. Dzolese describes the history of the involvement of Italian researchers in the restoration of Michonne on the initiative of R. A. Engelhardt.

The first part of Champa opens with the chapter "A Brief History of Champa"by M. Vickery. The main idea of the researcher is that there was no single Champa, but there were Cham polities on an ethnic basis, the centers of which were located in the lower reaches of the rivers. The largest kingdoms were located in the Thubon River Valley, where Mishon, Chakieu and Dongziong (Quang Nam Province) are located; in Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa Province); in Fanrang (Ninh Thuan Province); in the Pyantiet region (Binh Thuan Province). The fifth center, which has been known since the 11th century, is associated with Kuinen (Binh Dinh Province), located between Michon and Nha Trang. Chams come to Vietnam at the end of the 1st millennium BC by sea, possibly from the island of Kalimantan, in several waves. Their connection to the Shahuin archaeological culture is likely, but Vickery finds it problematic. The history of Champa (as a Cham country) before the seventh century is almost unknown. Vickery rejects the traditional identification of Champa with the Linyi polity known from the Chinese chronicles, which, in his opinion, was located north of the Cham habitat. Politically, Champa societies were chiefdoms (these terms are used interchangeably in this article). The thesis of Champa's conquest of Angkor in 1177, known only from an unreliable account in Chinese chronicles, should be discarded. The idea of a permanent Vietese onslaught to the south is also rejected: the Cham were the first to invade the Vietese lands in the tenth century. (if Linyi meant Champa, then the Cham onslaught on the north, i.e. on the Vietas, took place at the beginning of the 1st millennium AD); after that, the Vietas and Chams competed with equal success until the 15th century, when the Vietas ' onslaught on the south became constant.

In the second chapter, "Vietnam's expansion to the south according to "histories", " Nguyen Dinh Dau describes the subordination of the Cham lands to the Vietas in two texts: the monograph of Chang Chong Kim  (1958) and the chronicle compiled by annalists of the Nguyen dynasty in the XIX century.The author of the chapter proceeds from the idea of a single Champa and considers Linyi its first designation.

Ri Nakamura in the third chapter "Awar-Ahier: two keys to understanding the cosmology and ethnicity of the Cham people (Ninh Thuan Province, Vietnam)" explores the worldview of the modern Cham people of Central Vietnam based on the materials of his field research in 1995 - 1996.Noting the mobility of the Cham ethnic consciousness, the researcher shows cosmological dualism in their thinking. The concepts avar (Arabic, "in front, before") and ahir (Arabic, "behind, after") are used to denote the masculine and feminine principles, ² around which other elements of reality are grouped (deities, elements, parts of the day and body, days of the week, etc.), although these concepts themselves change the gender attribute depending on the situation. The Cham found in Central Vietnam are divided into two groups: the Cham proper (balamon) and the Cham bani. With the former, the concept of ahir is associated, which in this case has masculine connotations, and with the latter - avar, associated with feminine qualities. However, within the Cham-banm, the priesthood is identified with avar as a male concept, and secular persons with the female concept of ahir. Bani use the term akafir (Arabic, kafir-"infidels") in relation to chams - balamon. The Bani, in contrast to the traditional beliefs of the Chams-Balamon, are Muslims. But other peoples, including Muslim ones, are not designated by them by the concept of akafir, which is used only within the Cham ethnic group itself. The Chams of Central Vietnam believe that they are descendants of the ancient kingdom of Champa, while the Chams of South Vietnam consider belonging to the Muslim world to be their main distinguishing feature. The Cham people of Central Vietnam highly value their own akhar thrah script based on Indian syllabic alphabets: only the ability to read religious texts, traditions and poems written in Cham script shows a mastery of the ilmu" culture". This script is not known to the Chams of South Vietnam.

The author of the fourth chapter, "Eaglewood and the Economic History of Champa and Central Vietnam," E. Hardy reconstructs the economic basis of the Champa kingdoms, whose prosperity was based on participation in international trade. The historian considers the leading export item to be aloe wood (more precisely, its local variety Aquilaria crassna Pierre ex Lecomte), although other types of aquilaria are not excluded. It refers to numerous IP addresses-

¹ Reconstruction of the monument from its individual preserved parts without using modern construction methods.

² A special feature of Chams is matrilineal kinship counting and matrilocal settlement, although in some cases patrilocality and kinship counting on both lines are recorded.

tochniki, where exactly aloe wood is called "the main wealth of Champa". Duties from its sale, according to Hardy, were the main source of income for the rulers, while K. Hall considers looting of neighboring countries to be such [Hall, 1992, p. 258-259]. It was mined in the mountainous regions of Vietnam and Laos, and local mountain people sold and / or exchanged it for coastal products: salt, ceramics, copper, tin and other metals. Champa was a country of ³ cities.

In the fifth chapter, "Artistic Exchange, Regional Dialogue, and Cham Lands," J. Guy describes Champa's religious sculpture. Its development was influenced by connections with various regions and polities of India, including the Kushan and Gupta empires, the Satavahana and Pallava kingdoms, as well as with Dvaravati (Thailand), Cambodia and Java. The oldest examples of Indianized sculpture appeared, according to Guy, in the IV-VIII centuries. The fundamental and oldest religious trend adopted by the Chams was Shaivism. The cult of Shiva in the form of a lingam, and later in other guises, is attested by inscriptions and archaeological finds. There is also evidence of the penetration of Buddhism, which flourished under Indravarman II in the IX century, when the largest Buddhist complex of Champa was built - the Dongziong Monastery.

In the sixth chapter, "Architecture of the Temple Towers of ancient Champa (Central Vietnam)", Tran Ki Phuong reconstructs the engineering features of the preserved monuments and offers his typology of religious structures based on their stylistic and construction features. Cham tower temples, as a rule, are oriented strictly to the east and are crowned with a pointed tower-belvedere (pinnacle-piece). Tower roofs consist of three levels. The main temple (kalan) is often surrounded by secondary or daughter temples: the gate temple (gopura), the long house for rites, prayers and concentration (mandapa), the treasury, often called the tower of fire (koshagriha).

The architecture of the tower temples has gone through four stages in its development. At the first stage (VII-VIII centuries), Hindu buildings were built of brick and wood, the roof did not use the technique of brackets, there were no false doors and a high surrounding wall. A monument of this time is the Michon Temple E1 ⁴, the wooden parts of which have not been preserved. At the second stage (late VIII - mid IX centuries), brackets were already used, false doors appeared, brick was the main material, but limestone was also used. The temples of Michonne A'1, A'3, F1, F3, C7 and C1 (before its reconstruction) belong to this time. The third stage (mid-9th - late 10th centuries) was the heyday of Cham architecture: Hindu and Buddhist temple complexes with surrounding walls and a square plan were created. Limestone is used more widely. The artistic influence of Java and Cambodia is becoming clear. The key monument is the Mishon A1 Temple. At the fourth stage (XI-XVI centuries), the canonization of old styles took place, which led to some creative stagnation. Gigantomania goes hand in hand with monotony. The main materials in Cham architecture were brick and limestone, rather than the stone used to build Javanese and Khmer temples (Borobudur and Angkor Wat).

Chan Ki-Phuong identifies eight architectural groups, synthesizing the approaches of F. Stern and the Yutaka Shigeeda: 1) Northern District Group, Ulick Principality; 2) Michon, Amaravati Principality; 3) Quang Nam/Amaravati; 4) Binh Dinh, Vijaya Principality; 5) Po Nagar Nha Trang, Kauthara Principality; 6) Fu Hai Group, Panduranga Principality; 7) Klaung Garai Group; 8) Late structures (p. 181-182, Table 1).

The first part of the monograph is completed by a magnificent series of 16 color photographs.

The second part of the monograph opens with an article by P. Dzolese "Results of the archaeological survey of Group G of Michonne in 1997-2007" Group G is located on a seven-meter hill, the dimensions of which are 84.5 × 45 m at the base, and the top forms a platform of 74.5 × 40 m. The temple complex includes sanctuary G1, gate temple (G2), meeting hall (G3), south treasury (G4) and pavilion for the foundation stele (G5), where the inscription p. 100 was kept (Finot, 1904, p.955-962). It was built by order of King Jaya Harivarman II in the 1150s-1160s. The excavations revealed the stratigraphy of the monument consisting of nine layers, including the lower (ninth)layer. corresponds to the time of creation and operation of the complex (p. 223-224). The eighth layer consists of ash, indicating an ancient fire. Archaeologists suggest that as a result of this fire, the temple complex was abandoned. The temple complex is oriented with

³ D. V. Deopik made an attempt to reconstruct the "agrarian history" of Champa [Deopik, 2006].

⁴ Each Michonne temple complex is designated by one of the letters of the Latin alphabet and a number indicating the building of the complex [Parmentier, 1904, p. 805-896]. In cases where it is difficult for a building to belong to a particular complex, type A ' symbols are used.

from east to west with a slight deviation to the southeast (for some reason Dzolese calls it northeast on p. 227, although the map of the monument on p. 41-42 suggests otherwise). Clay roof tiles and terracotta figurines were found, including 52 metopes depicting the " face of happiness "(kirtimukha) from G1 (p. 231-232, figs. 34, 35). Fragments of a statue of Krishna dancing on a naga serpent and a statuette of a female deity on tympanums G2 are interesting (p. 230-231, figs. 32, 33). The six metopes depicting kirtimukha differ from the others stylistically, so Dzolese presumably refers them to a late time (p. 232-233, figs. 34 - 35). At the corners of the roof are the Makara water spirits, whose fixing spikes bear inscriptions in Cham, but three of them are marked with a Chinese or Vietnamese character that reads "Thap" (p. 234). Whether this indicates the presence of Chinese builders or the ethnic origin of the donors, or whether these are trademarks of workshops, we can only guess. The only indisputable conclusion is that Champa's population was hardly mono-ethnic.

According to the authors of the eighth chapter "Damage to buildings and building materials" L. Binda, P. Condoglio and F. and M. Landoni, in general, damage is caused by two groups of factors that can complement each other: human impact (bombing during the civil war; unsuccessful repairs) and environmental influence (rough tropical vegetation, high humidity, ground sediment). In some cases, buildings were completely destroyed (Group A), in others-partially damaged. Many buildings have cracks (for example, B3 due to shelling and ground precipitation, p. 242, fig. 5). In kalan G1, there is a dense vegetation of moss and lichen on the walls (p.245, fig. 11; p. 247, fig. 14a, b, c). Due to the use of cement by a Vietnamese-Polish expedition in the 1980s, the masonry is stratified due to salt crystallization (p. 249, fig. 16a, b). Temple G1 was hidden by earth, and trees grow on its walls, and this leads to the formation of cracks. The chapter is provided with gorgeous color illustrations.

In the ninth chapter, "Construction techniques", L. Binda and P. Condoglio describe the architectural structure of G-type temples-towers, typical for Cham architects: foundation, plinth, main body, roof. The main material was sandstone, although some parts, such as lintels, are made of laterite, the nearest deposits of which are located eighty kilometers from Michonne. An interesting feature of the foundation is the absence of traces of a construction pit: the buildings were built on a shallow foundation of various bricks. Wall masonry consists of three vertical sheets( leaves), the outer ones consist of whole bricks and have a thickness equal to their length. Bricks are built with a poke, not a spoon. The middle sheet is formed by whole and half-formed bricks of unequal shape, as well as clay and quartzite compositions. In the course of research, more than five thousand whole bricks were found, divided into thirty types of different sizes. For better grip, the bricks were scratched. Stairs in buildings were also made of brick, but not attached, but attached to them. The original floor of the Group G buildings could not be found. The roofs were made of wood. Two forms of roofs with a false arch are known: a pyramid and a roof with a double bend, or" roof-saddle " (p. 280, FIG. 26).

In the tenth chapter "Characteristics of materials", L. Binda, P. Condoglio and K. Tedeschi publish the results of physical and chemical analysis of bricks and bonding mortar from different Michonne architectural groups. Bricks were fired at temperatures below 900 °C. Quartz, monocrystalline and polycrystalline feldspar, amphibolic mica were found in them, and plagioclase and kaolinite silicates were found in one of them. The bonding solution contains traces of organic resin Dipterocarpacea alata, which was decided to be used in the restoration.

In the eleventh chapter, "Conservation Design and Intervention," L. Binda, P. Condoglio, and P. Pichardt describe the reconstruction of two buildings in Group G - the Assembly Hall G3 and the pavilion for the foundation stele G5. The chosen method of anastylosis assumes minimal intervention of restorers and preservation of the monument in the form in which it has come down to us. Therefore, instead of erecting buildings entirely, they were only put in order: potential causes of collapse were eliminated (vegetation was removed and bricks were added for stability), and the drainage system was restored. The reconstruction results are shown in photo No. 27 (p. 330, cf.: p. 324, FIG. 17).

The author of the twelfth chapter, "Restoration of the laterite fence and restoration of the original drainage system in Group G of Michonne", is Dang Kian Ngoc.

In the thirteenth chapter, "Neotectonic and geomorphological characteristics of the Michonne archaeological area," Pham Van Hung, K. Rose, and Dinh Van Toan state that the Michonne area has a certain tectonic activity in the form of cracks in the ground, which is caused by a system of faults running in almost meridional and north-west and south-east directions.

The authors of the fourteenth chapter "Absolute dating of monuments of group G and E7 Michon using the thermoluminescent method" M. Martini, E. Sibilli, M. Cucartzi and P. Dzolese attribute the construction of group G to the XII century and the reign of Jaya Harivarman I, noting the possibility of the existence of earlier buildings, since some samples of bricks and tiles show IX-X centuries. Samples from E7 were taken from a trial trench in the fence, and their dating varies widely from the 8th to the 13th century. Researchers claim that this may be evidence of the last cham construction in this temple complex.

M. Kukartsi and his colleagues in the fifteenth chapter "Geophysical study of the Michonne archaeological site" write that magnetic exploration has established the presence of archaeological objects in Group L, which can become the subject of further study. Magnetic exploration in Group G showed the absence of earlier brick structures than those already known.

In the sixteenth chapter, "Michonne Geographic Information System: Mapping Archaeological Risks", M. Cucartzi, L. Binda, J. Cardani, M. Kore and E. Garavaglia describe the Odysseus electronic database and its presentation on Michonne.

In general, the collective monograph turned out to be very informative. I will only point out that its name is too general and not quite accurate: the main object of study is Michon's group G, and not all of its architectural groups; in addition, it is largely a question of restoration. However, this does not reduce the value of the peer-reviewed work. It is expected that it will serve many researchers to reconstruct the social, economic, political, and cultural history, construction, and religious beliefs of the Chams of the past and present.

list of literature

Deopik D. V. Agrarian history of the Champa State in the II-XV centuries according to quantitative analysis of epigraphy // Teoriya i metody issledovaniya vostochnoy epigrafiki [Theory and methods of research in Eastern epigraphy].

Finot L. Notes d'épigrpaphie XI: Les inscriptions de Mї-Son // Bulletin de l'École Française d'Éxtrême-Orient. T. 4. Fasc. 4. 1904.

Hall K. Economic History of Early Southeast Asia // Cambridge History of Southeast Asia / Ed. by N. Tarling. Vol. 1. Pt. 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.

Parmentier H. Les monuments du cirque de Mї-Son // Bulletin de l'École Française d'Éxtrême-Orient. T. 4. Fasc. 4. 1904.

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