The four-km-long ceramic mural in Hanoi, which was recognized as the world’s longest one by the Guinness World Records in late 2010, has now sustained serious damage.

The mural, which spans an almost 4-km dyke section along the Red River in Hoan Kiem and Ba Dinh Districts and covers an area of 7,000m2, has now been alarmingly damaged since being built in late 2010.

Several sections of the masterwork, which drew the largest contribution of foreign artists ever, now look shabby with parts of the ceramic layers falling off.

The mural is also riddled with deep cracks, with several stretching as long as dozens of meters.

Some are concerned that the “ceramic street” may collapse any time.

In addition, pavement cafes, construction sites and clothes hung by locals make the mural look even messier.

Though the local government has dispatched workers to make repairs to the work, the efforts proved meager compared to its extensive, serious damage.

Construction on the 3,950m-long mural began in 2008 on a seemingly-impossible idea of a local journalist/ artist.

The work features 21 mosaic sections depicting various themes, ranging from decorative patterns used in feudal dynasties and by 54 ethnic peoples, kids’ paintings to contemporary works by local and international artists and folk paintings.

The project attracted major interest and contribution from local and foreign artists and artisans, international organizations and embassies.

More than 100 international artists spent weeks and even months working on certain sections or gifted the organizer with their ceramics from back home.

The work, which adopts a huge number of ceramics from famed local pottery villages including Bat Trang, Phu Lang and Chu Dau, vividly reflects Vietnam’s charms and summarizes its history.

It is one of the major projects to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long- Hanoi in 2010.

CNN also covered the project in one of its program in September 2009.