Nam Giao Palace Stele is currently located in the outdoor display system and memorial space at the National Museum of History. This rare artifact is a testament to the history of building and defending the country of the Vietnamese nation.
According to Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu, it is written: "Giap Tuat, the 15th year (1154) in September, the king went to the south gate of Dai La citadel to see the construction of Vien Khau altars" (Nam Giao). Thus, during the Ly Dynasty, the heaven-offering altars (also known as Hoan Khau altars or Vien Khau altars) were established in the capital Thang Long.
In the reign of King Le Than Tong (1619 - 1643), he restored the rituals at this temple and called it Nam Giao. Also according to Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu: "Previously, Nam Giao temple had a hall, but the scale was still small. Here, the King ordered more.
The main hall has square pillars, stone floors, inside and outside the floors are all built of stone, pillars, rows, horizontal panels, and ribbons are all painted with lacquer and gold, the scale of the regime is new and brilliant. Vuong again ordered the gods, Ho Si Duong, to make engravings on the stone to record this matter.
When the Nguyen Dynasty moved the capital to Hue, the Nam Giao dance in Thang Long was no longer allowed to hold rituals. In 1804, the Nam Giao dance was dismantled to use bricks and tiles to build a citadel. Here, only the stele house and this stele remained.
The stele was transferred by the French Far Eastern Museum, placed in the garden of the Louis Finot Museum in 1947 - now the National Museum of History.
Nam Giao lighthouse stele is a rare artifact from the time of Le Trung Hung that has been preserved to this day.
With special historical and artistic value, the Nam Giao Lantern has been recognized by the Prime Minister as a National Treasure under Decision No. 2382/QD-TTg dated December 23, 2015.
