One of five ancient Cham books donated to the My Son Sanctuary management board in Quang Nam province. These books are linked to old ritual or worship ceremonies of the Cham people in central Vietnam over past decades. (Photo courtesy of My Son Sanctuary)

The books were donated by local collector Lam Zu Xenh from Quang Ngai province. The collections, made from Do (poonah paper) and ink by the Cham people, had been preserved by a Cham teacher in central Vietnam before Xenh collected them from a trans-Vietnam trip six years ago. Xenh said only several Cham people could read and understand the old scripts, and he hoped cultural researchers would translate the content of the books into Vietnamese for public display.

The My Son Sanctuary–a UNESCO-recognised world heritage site in Quang Nam province–had 70 temples and towers built in the 4th century, but many towers had collapsed or were ruined due to bombardments from wars and weather.