Two whale skeletons in Ly Son island district set record as largest in Vietnam

On September 17, Ms. Pham Thi Huong, Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Ly Son district (Quang Ngai province) said that in 2020, the district completely restored the two largest whale skeletons on the island. The two intact whale skeletons, preserved at Lang Tan relic, were determined by researchers to be over 200 years old. The larger skeleton is over 22 m long and is called "Dong Dinh Dai Vuong"; the smaller skeleton is 18 m long and is called "Duc Ngu Nhi Vi Ton Than" by the locals. Each whale skeleton consists of 50 vertebrae; the head bone is 4 m high; the ivory bone is 4.7 m long. After being restored, the two whale skeletons at Lang Tan and the whale worship rituals were preserved and exploited by Ly Son district to become new and unique tourism products for visitors to the island.

The Chairman of the People's Committee of Ly Son district added that the whale worship is a unique cultural belief of coastal fishermen. Ly Son district is very fortunate to be managing and protecting two whale skeletons. The fact that the Vietnam Record Organization has just established the largest record in Vietnam with two whale skeletons helps the locality better preserve the beliefs of coastal people. At the same time, the locality has an additional unique tourism product to introduce to friends and domestic and foreign tourists.

According to the Department of Culture and Information of Ly Son district, Lang Tan relic - where two whale skeletons are preserved - is always an attractive destination for tourists on their journey to explore Ly Son volcanic island. In 2023, Ly Son welcomed more than 150,000 visitors. Most visitors come to Lang Tan to check-in, learn about the two skeletons and whale worship.