Banh It Cham Towers

The Banh It towers rise from a low hillock about 20 kilometers northwest of Qui Nhon, four Cham structures in varying states of preservation standing on a ridge above the coastal plain. They are among the better-preserved Cham monuments in Binh Dinh province, and the setting — isolated, overgrown, without the souvenir stalls that surround the more famous towers at My Son — gives them a particular quality.

The largest tower, the main kalan or sanctuary tower, still stands to its original height with its corbelled brick spire intact. The interior is dark and smoky from incense offerings; local people still treat these as active sacred sites rather than historical monuments. A smaller gate tower and two ancillary structures complete the group. Getting here is straightforward by motorbike or hired car from Qui Nhon.

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The towers were built between the 11th and 12th centuries at the height of the Champa kingdom's power. Cham architecture is distinctive for its red brick construction — the bricks were laid without mortar, cemented by a vegetable resin still not fully identified by researchers. The towers have survived nearly a thousand years of tropical weather with barely a crack, while modern concrete structures nearby have crumbled in decades.

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