My Son is Vietnam's most important Cham site. The kingdom of Champa flourished from the 2nd to the 15th centuries. It first appeared around present-day Danang and later spread south to what is now Nha Trang and Phan Rang. Champa became Indianised through commercial relations with India: the Chams adopted Hinduism, employed Sanskrit as a sacred language and borrowed from Indian art. Most of the temples were dedicated to Cham kings associated with divinities, especially Shiva, who was regarded as the founder and protector of Champa's dynasties. The Chams, who lacked enough land for agriculture along the mountainous coast were semi-piratic and conducted attacks on passing trading ships. As a result, they were in a constant state of war with the Vietnamese to the north and the Khmers to the west. The Chams successfully threw off Khmer rule in the 12th century but were entirely absorbed by Vietnam in the 17th century. The site was occupied until the 13th century, the longest period of development of any monument in South-East Asia. The Chams are best known for the many brick sanctuaries (Cham towers) they constructed throughout the south. The major Cham site is at My Son, south of Danang. This site is set in a verdant valley surrounded by hills and overlooked by massive Cat's Tooth Mountain. During the Vietnam War, the vicinity of My Son was completely devastated and depopulated in extended bitter fighting. Finding it a convenient staging ground, Viet Cong guerrillas used My Son as a base; in response the Americans bombed the monuments. Of the 68 structures of which traces have been found, 25 survived repeated pillaging in previous centuries by the Chinese, Khmer and Vietnamese. The American bombings spared about 20 of these, some of which sustained damage. Today, Vietnamese authorities are attempting to restore the remaining sites (Source: Lonely Planet, Vietnam, 3rd ed. 1995). This picture was taken on 23 August 2012, Sig.... .