In 2020, the special zone of Ly Son invited experts to restore two sets of Ong fish bones that are still relatively intact, dating back over 200 years, being preserved at Lang Tan Relic, with a total cost of more than 14 billion VND (including the display house).
Among them, the large skeleton is more than 22m long, named "Dong Dinh Dai Vuong"; the small skeleton is 18m long, called "Du Ngu Nhi Vi Ton Than". These are the first two Mr. Fish skeletons restored in Quang Ngai.
The two skeletons are nearly 4m tall, each consisting of 50 vertebrae (diameter more than 40cm), 28 ribs, each bone nearly 10m long. The head bone is 4m long, the jawbone is 4.7m long.
Since 2021, after completing restoration, two whale skeletons at Lang Tan Relic and the belief in whale worship have been exploited by the Ly Son Special Zone, becoming a new tourism product, attracting a large number of domestic and foreign tourists.
However, after a few years of being put into operation, many restored plastic bone items (assembly) of the two Mr. Fish skeletons have shown serious degradation, affecting the aesthetics and display value.
According to reporters' records, many sections of restored cartilage are moldy, peeling off the surface layer, even rotten, and scattered on the ground, revealing the stainless steel frame inside.
Mr. Dang Kim Dong, specialist of the Center for Communication - Culture - Sports of the Ly Son Special Zone, said that because the two skeletons were buried hundreds of years ago, when carrying out the reconstruction, many real bones were no longer intact, forcing about 40% to be restored. Worryingly, currently all the restored bones are heavily damaged, no longer ensuring aesthetics as well as display requirements.
Faced with the above situation, the Ly Son special zone government has established a working group to coordinate with the investor, construction unit and specialized units to inspect the site, assess the level of degradation to propose remedial plans in the coming time.
According to Mr. Phan Van Thao, Head of the Culture - Society Department of Ly Son Special Zone, the Department has directed the Center for Information, Culture and Sports to report in detail on the damaged condition, and at the same time propose to allocate funds for maintenance and repair to preserve cultural and religious values and better serve the sightseeing needs of people and tourists.
In September 2024, the Vietnam Records Organization established the largest record in Vietnam for two sets of Ong fish bones restored and preserved at Lang Tan Relic.
Currently, the special zone of Ly Son has 7 whale shrines, each containing dozens of skeletons, also known as "pearls", dating back from several decades to more than 300 years.
According to the beliefs of coastal residents, Ong fish is likened to the god of the South Sea, protecting and saving fishermen in the open sea. Therefore, when Ong fish "rely", all fishermen organize a solemn burial and worship ceremony to show their sincerity.
