The Bronze Drums and the Earrings: Volume One of A Traveller’s Story of Vietnam’s Past

This book is written for people interested in history from a travellers’ perspective. It briefly describes Vietnamese history over eight periods from prehistory to the present. This book covers Period I from 700 BCE to 111 BCE. The book briefly discusses the origin of the Vietnamese. It tells the stories of the legendary Hùng kings - the founders of Vietnam - the mythical Four Immortals, the bronze drums manufactured in the north, and earrings produced in the central and southern parts of the country. It recounts the tragic love story of the Magic Crossbow, the 2200-year-old fort of Cổ Loa and its builder, An Dương Vương. It describes the key battles, including the invasion of the Yue kingdoms by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, his general, Zhao Tuo and the ending of the Nan-yue kingdom. It has 71 photographs, maps and diagrams showing locations of interest to a traveller, but limited to this period only. It also includes lines from famous Vietnamese poems, songs, and quotes, all translated into English. Sources of the books came from archaeological evidence, works by historians, ancient Chinese texts and Vietnamese records, plus more recent academic papers and local newspaper articles. These are included in the Appendices and Bibliography. The book aims to draw a balance between telling stories that engage a traveller and, at the same time, discussing historical findings that are of interest to serious scholars. It is Volume One of nine volumes covering the history of Vietnam to 1954. The other volumes are to be published in the next few years.