Vietnam TravelTravel Special FeaturesVietnam - The Craft VillagesThe Bronze wares

The Bronze wares

Back

1 2

Black bronze, it is said, is the mother of gold, For this reason, upon hearing the peals of giant bell, the golden buffalo statue at the Chinese king's court woke up and ran towards Dai Viet, where it settled beside its 'mother'.

Khong Lo worried that whenever the bell was struck it would attract golden objects. To avoid antagonizing Dai Viet's neighbors, the bell was thrown into Hai Noi's West Lake. Hearing the peals of the bell as it sank beneath the waves, the golden buffalo statue followed, which is why West Lake is sometimes called 'Golden Buffalo Lake'.

While fanciful, this story contains some elements of truth. The four bronze objects described in the folk tale did exist, and were collectively known as 'the Four Holy Objects'. Moreover, there is a connection between bronze-casting and West Lake. The most famous bronze-casters in Vietnam came from five villages to settle in Ngu Xa (the name of which translates as 'Five Villages'). Founded during the Le Dynasty in the 15th century, this hamlet is located on the eastern bank of Truc Bach Lake, the small lake that, today, is separated from West Lake by Thanh Nien Road.

The villagers of Truc Bach secured their reputation as Vietnam's best bronze-casters by producing a massive Buddha statue, which stood five-and-a-half meters tall and weighed over 12 tons. The mold from which this sacred image paper, and took three years to make. According to the village's annals, two master craftsmen named Nguyen Phu Hien and Nguyen Van Tuy oversaw the design and production of this giant Buddha.

Today, Truc Bach is no longer a separate village, but rather a neighborhood in Hanoi. Yet this area has retained a self-contained, village-like atmosphere, with quiet, shady streets and a charming lakefront promenade. While many families have abandoned their traditional craft, a few bronze-casters remain, so that some house-holds around Ngu Xa Street still display bronze bells, urns and statues on their front stoops. And in Tan Thanh Pagoda on Ngu Xa Street visitors will find the massive bronze Buddha image that made the craftsmen of Truc Bach famous.

Getting There

Ngu Xa Street is in the Truc Bach neighborhood of Hanoi, near Truc Bach Lake. Fro central Hanoi, travel west on Quan Thanh Street, then turn right on Chau Long, which intersects with Ngu Xa. Tam Thanh Pagoda is on Ngu Xa Street.

Back

1 2