France returns 2,000-year-old Dong Son bronze drum to Vietnam

The handover ceremony took place on Thursday during the official visit to France by Vietnam’s Party General Secretary and State President To Lam.

The French Ministry of Culture transferred the drum from the Rennes Museum of Fine Arts to Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, with Party General Secretary and State President To Lam’s wife attending the ceremony.

French experts dated the drum to around the fifth century BC.

Measuring 40.7 centimeters high and 54.5 centimeters in diameter, the artifact weighs 17.2 kilograms.

The drum belongs to the Dong Son culture, which flourished in northern Vietnam during the Bronze Age and is renowned for its sophisticated bronze-casting techniques.

Dong Son drums are regarded as among the most distinctive artifacts of Bronze Age Southeast Asia and are closely associated with Vietnam’s ancient history and cultural heritage.

The drum was seized by French customs officers at Rennes airport in 2014 because it was being transported without valid documentation.

It was later transferred to the Rennes Museum of Fine Arts for preservation, research and safekeeping.

At the handover ceremony, French Culture Minister Catherine Pégard highlighted the role of cultural heritage in the longstanding ties between France and Vietnam.

She said both countries attach great importance to preserving heritage as part of national identity and cultural dialogue.

The return of the drum also reflects growing cultural cooperation between the two countries under their comprehensive strategic partnership.