Discovery of 'To Vo Gate' at the bottom of the sea on Ly Son island

A group of divers and some archaeologists have just discovered a beautiful lava dome, located outside the coral reef close to the coast of An Binh commune, Ly Son island district.

The cliffs and To Vo Gate are formed by lava rock on Ly Son Island.

It is estimated that this is likely a trace of a volcanic eruption millions of years ago, when lava met seawater and solidified, creating a majestic stone arch like the current Cong To Vo on Ly Son Island.

Mr. Doan Xum, Director of Doan Anh Duong Company, said that after diving to survey the seabed at Be Island (An Binh island commune), archeologists and a group of divers discovered that this stone arch has a curved shape and is about 20m long. From the seabed up, the highest point of the arch is about 5m.

According to Mr. Xum, after decades of surveying many sea and island areas across the country, he and his divers have never seen such a majestic and beautiful rock arch.

"This is a rare natural masterpiece bestowed upon the Ly Son sea area. The stone arch is identical to the To Vo Gate relic on land in Tay village, An Vinh commune (Big Island), but the length and size of this stone arch are many times larger," said Mr. Xum.

After watching the clip filmed by experts and divers at the bottom of the sea, Dr. Nguyen Dang Vu, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ngai, said that the discovery of the giant stone arch is a great opportunity for Ly Son to develop eco-tourism associated with diving and exploring the ocean floor.

“Ly Son has a wild and fascinating beauty, including vestiges such as the Thoi Loi volcanic basin, Tien Well, along with a system of caves and cliffs formed from volcanic lava both on land and underwater, creating a rare chain of natural heritage. This stone arch will be preserved to serve the development of tourism in the Ly Son island area,” Mr. Vu affirmed.

In a recent survey, a group of divers discovered the remains of two ancient ships carrying ceramics and building materials that sank near the shore of An Binh commune. Initially, archaeologists determined that these ceramic and sandstone artifacts were used to build ancient Champa temples dating from the 15th to 16th centuries.

“Ly Son Island was formed by the remnants of a volcanic eruption 250 to 300 million years ago. In addition to the natural heritage on land and underwater, the sea area of ​​Ly Son Island has a rich ecosystem including 700 species of flora and fauna with nearly 140 species of seaweed, 160 species of coral, more than 300 species of reef fish, 100 species of crustaceans and a number of other species that are rich and diverse in species,” said Dr. Vu.

According to Vietnamnet