Professor Nguyen Van Hao, former deputy head of the Archaeological Institute, told Thanh Nien the structure found in Dong Da district last year by a roadwork unit was not the dan xa tac (state altar) of the Ly Dynasty (1010-1225). The top of the xa tac must be a high platform covered in five different-coloured soils which this site was not, he said. Instead, it was tiled and small less than 15 square meters while the state altar would have been larger.
Hanoi road workers discover ancient structure A roadwork unit discovered an ancient structure thought to be 800 years old beneath a road under construction in Hanoi.