The Valley of Pitchers is called the area in the east of Laos, near the city of Phon Sawan, located on the Xianghuang plateau and consisting of several sites dotted with huge stone pitchers. In the valley, more than 60 locations of pitcher locations were found, the number of which at each site ranges from single copies to several hundred pieces. The size of giant vessels varies from 1 to 3 meters, their weight can reach 6 tons, and their age is 1500 - 2000 years. Jugs were made of granite, sandstone, rock and calcined coral, most of them are cylindrical in shape, but also found in oval and square shapes, some vessels had lids. Inside and next to the megalithic jugs, glass beads, fragments of stone, ceramic and bronze objects, and bones were found. According to archaeologists, pitchers were used by an ancient people living in Southeast Asia, whose culture remains completely unknown. Scientists can not yet answer the question of where and by whom these vessels were made (the rock from which they were made was not found nearby) and how the jugs got into this area. The first archaeological research of the Valley of Pitchers in the 30s of the XX century was conducted by the French archaeologist Madeleine Colani. In the vicinity of the valley, she discovered a cave with two holes and traces of soot (it is assumed that the cave served as a crematorium, and the holes were chimneys), which allowed her to hypothesize the use of jugs for ritual funeral rites. Other scholars are inclined to believe that the jugs were located along the trade route and served as a reservoir for rainwater, which travelers and animals quenched with thirst. The locals have their own story on this score, they believe that giants lived in the valley 2,000 years ago, and jugs are vessels for making rice wine, which the giants celebrated their victories over enemies. Exploration of the Kuvshin Valley is currently very slow - during the Vietnam War, this area was subjected to the strongest bombing of American aircraft, and in the Valley there are now thousands of unexploded ordnance. Three sites are open for visiting - No. 1, 2, 3. Site No. 1 is located 15 kilometers southwest of the city of Phonsavan, there are more than 300 pitchers on it, site No. 2 is located 25 kilometers south of Phonsavan (about 90 stone vessels), site No. 3 - 35 kilometers southeast of Phonsavan (more than 150 pitchers). The territory of these sites has been completely cleared of air bombs, however, when visiting the Kuvshinov Valley, you must follow safety rules and not deviate from the route - special marks with the inscription MAG (Mine Advisory Group, which has been working since 2004) are set on cleared places from bombs demining of the territory), from the side of the white strip on the plate - zone without min.