Mysterious 'stone cave' on Co Thach hill, hundreds of years old

The "stone cave" still preserves stone banks, stone walls, stone wells, and stone houses built hundreds of years ago, making visitors who come to explore it amazed by this rare, ancient, and mysterious feature.

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 1. — The way up to the "stone cave"

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 2. — The walls and houses are made of stone, and over time have been covered with a layer of ancient moss.

According to Mr. Vo Van Hung (65 years old, in village 6, Tuy An Nam commune), the name "Co Thach hill" has only recently been given by tourists who come to explore and visit. Since ancient times, people in this area have been calling it "stone cave", because the hill is full of rocks, the stone banks, walls and stone cowsheds are almost a hundred years old.

This ancient stone wall system is not a single stone wall but a system of dozens of kilometers long, spread across the hills and fields. The stone walls have an average height of 1 - 3 meters, width of 4 - 5 meters, extending from the village path up the hills and fields.

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 3. — The blocks of stone are stacked on top of each other without using any adhesive and remain durable over time.

The stone walls here were built by stacking stone slabs on top of each other without using adhesives, and have withstood the test of time. The walls are covered with moss, giving them a classic, mysterious look.

In addition to the unique system of roads, banks, and walls, the ancient houses also contribute to the mysterious beauty of the "stone cave". The strange thing is that these houses are all built in a special architecture with the walls being stone slabs carved from large rocks available on the hill, stacked on top of each other without any adhesive. The house is built with one room, quite low, only about 10 m, with one door facing the road.

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 4. — Ancient stone well from ancient times was restored for tourism

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 5. — According to Mr. Vo Van Hung (65 years old, local resident), the stone well was previously dug by his grandparents to serve their daily needs when they went to work in the fields.

Over time, the "stone cave" now has only a few ancient houses left. To take advantage of these structures, the locals renovated them to use as cow barns.

Mr. Hung also said: "My cowshed was built nearly 70 - 80 years ago, since my grandparents left it. No need for any adhesive, just bring the stones from the field and use a hammer to flatten them and then stack them up. For example, where there are gaps or gaps, we use small stones to fill in to create firmness. There is also a stone well here that was dug in ancient times, so people who work on the fields can stay overnight to have water to drink, do daily activities or give water to their cows."

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 6. — The stone cowshed was built by locals decades ago to raise cows on the "stone cave".

Not only attracting tourists with unique stone architecture from ancient times, the "stone cave" also makes tourists excited with the extremely beautiful landscape when the east side borders the sea overlooking Xuan Dai Bay, in the distance is Hon Yen (belonging to Xuan Dai Bay), Shark's mouth right at the foot of the hill is also a check-in point not to be missed.

Kỳ bí 'động đá' đồi Cổ Thạch trăm năm tuổi- Ảnh 7. — In addition to the stone banks and walls, stone houses and stone wells, this place also preserves oval-shaped stone tombs.

Mr. Tran Van Bien, Chairman of Tuy An Dong Commune People's Committee, said: "This stone hill has been here for a long time, I can't remember the exact time. In the past, people took stones from the fields to pile up the border and used them to build cow pens. The locality's orientation goal for this "stone cave" area, also known as Co Thach hill, is to develop tourism associated with Ganh Da Dia to create a comprehensive tourism development."