The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and Asia Society, New York, offer an unprecedented exhibition of art from ancient Viet Nam—the first U.S. exhibition to address in depth the historical, geographic and cultural contexts of precolonial Vietnamese art. Throughout its long history, Viet Nam served as a central hub for trade routes connecting the regions of Asia and the West, with travelers and merchants traversing its long open plains, and trade vessels from as far west as India and Rome finding safe haven in its harbors.