Programs and Events

Hintang Archeological Park Tourist Center Officially Opened

Mr. Archibald and HE Mr. Phomphanh with local officials and dignitaries in front of the panels explaining the significance of the site.

The ancient menhirs

On March 27, 2007, U.S. Embassy officer Joshua Archibald traveled to Huaphan province and officially opened the tourist center at the Hintang Archeological Park on behalf of the Embassy. This site is one of the most important pre-historic sites in northern Laos. It is comprised of several fields littered with erect stone slabs several meters in height and discs more than one meter wide, called menhirs. The purpose of the menhirs – even the material they are made of – remains unknown (along with the better known enigma of the Plain of Jars in neighboring Xieng Khouang province). The artifacts were likely built around the 10^th or 11^th centuries by highly developed civilizations in the interior uplands of Southeast Asia. 

H.E. Vice Governor Mr. Phomphanh Keomixay represented Huaphan Province at the event.  Under the auspices of the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation, the U.S. Government funded a series of panels to explain the significance of the park and the ancient menhirs, and helped set up a site management and protection plan. This project was the first in Laos to use this Fund, originally set up by the U.S. Congress in 2001 to support heritage preservation in developing countries around the world.