Artifacts and Worship Items
Bronze Statues
The Bronze Bell
Lanh Giang Temple now preserves a bronze bell with a length of 0.6 meters (excluding the hanging loop). The bell loop is designed in the shape of a winding dragon, with a wide mouth, long beard curling backward, and stiff fins standing upright, reflecting dragon image of the Late Le Dynasty (18th century). The body of the bell has an inscription “Lảnh Giang linh từ, Canh Thân niên chế” (The Sacred Lanh Giang, Made in the Year of the Metal Monkey). The bell is presently hung in the left wing of the Central Hall.
Horizontal Lacquered Boards and Antithetical Couplets
Lanh Giang Temple houses a considerable number of antithetical couplets and horizontal lacquered boards, arranged throughout the various altars from the outside to the main hall, as well as in the Mother Goddess Hall area, including: 33 antithetical couplets and 22 horizontal lacquered boards. These crimsoned and gilded wooden horizontal lacquered boards and antithetical couplets are content-rich, praising the merits of the deities worshiped here, adding to the dignity, solemnity, and sacredness of each worship hall.
Worship Palanquins, the Worship Throne, and Edicule
The Incense table
The incense table is in the central compartment of the Front Hall. It is 2.2 meters long, 1.3 meters wide, and 1.8 meters high. It has a lime flower upper border, six compartments of different sizes, lower raised carvings of themes, including the four blessings, pomegranate, chrysanthemum, yellow apricot blossoms, unicorn, phoenix, and a unique scene of a person sitting in a carriage, all coated in a crimsoned and gilded layer.
The Hagiography
Lanh Giang Temple now preserves the hagiography book “Hùng triều nhất vị thủy thần xuất thế sự tích” (The Tale of a Water God Born during Hung King’s Reign). It was composed in the first year of Hong Phuc era (1572) by Nguyen Binh, who served as the Grand Secretary of Eastern Cabinet at the Hanlin Academy. Later, in the second year of Vinh Huu era (1736), Eighth-Tier Clerk Nguyen Hien transcribed this hagiography from the original version.
In 1938, the hagiography was once again copied from the original manuscript preserved at the temple. The hagiography narrates the story of three brothers from the Pham family, deities worshiped at Lanh Giang Temple. They were born in the form of snakes and made significant contributions in assisting King Hung Due Vuong to repel the Thuc army, safeguarding the borders, and bringing peace to the nation.
Records of Ordination
Lanh Giang Temple preserves 11 records of ordination, including six from the Later Le Dynasty and five from the Nguyen Dynasty (the oldest dating back to the fifth year of Chinh Hoa (1683), and the most recent from the ninth year of Khai Dinh (1924)). Additionally, there are two documents recording the temple’s hagiography.
All records of ordination of Lanh Giang Temple confer titles on the deities. Two of the records ordered the people of An Lac, Duy Tien, Ha Nam to worship the Holy Lord Guarding the Western Intersection of Three Regions under Hung King Dynasty. The hagiography preserved in the temple also states: “From then on, through the Early Ly, Dinh, Early Le, Ly, and Tran dynasties, these deities often contributed to helping the country and protecting the people. The kings often granted additional honorary titles to be remembered forever”.