Ancient site · City
Óc Eo
Óc Eo, in An Giang Province in Vietnam's Mekong Delta, was a large port of the kingdom of Funan, known from Chinese records. Found by aerial photography and first excavated by Louis Malleret in 1942, it covers about 450 hectares and was linked by canals to the sea and to Angkor Borei, 68 km away.
Finds include Roman gold medallions of the emperor Antoninus Pius, gold jewellery, silver coins minted in Funan and Hindu statues such as a Vishnu. Óc Eo shows how the Mekong Delta joined a trade network reaching from Rome to China.
- Dates
- c. 2nd century BCE – 7th century CE
- Still standing
- No, or only traces
- Location
- 10.23° N, 105.15° E
How we know
Chinese records describe the kingdom of Funan, and seals and objects at Óc Eo carry short Sanskrit inscriptions, alongside excavated remains.
Nearby sites
- Ban Chiang c. 2000 or 1500 BCE – c. 200 CE (start date disputed)
- Plain of Jars jars placed perhaps c. 1240–660 BCE; burials at Site 1 8th–13th centuries CE
- Đông Sơn c. 1000 BCE – 1st century CE (culture)
- Cổ Loa Citadel c. 4th–2nd century BCE
- Spirit Cave c. 12,000–7,000 radiocarbon years ago (very roughly 10,000–5500 BCE)
- Manunggul Cave (Tabon Caves) Manunggul Jar c. 890–710 BCE