Vietnam TravelTravel Special FeaturesVietnam - The Craft VillagesStone Carving

Stone Carving

We drive past shimmering green paddy fields, glittering canals and limestone mounts, which rise from the flat plain like marbles scattered by a race of giants. These giants, it seems, must work in Ninh Van village, since the roadway is lined with massive blocks of stone, towering statues of revolutionary heroes, seated monks twice life-size, and stone pedestals as big as our car.

Rounding a corner the illusion shatters, as we draw into a courtyard and find the real source of Ninh Van's imposing statues. The air is thick with dust as dozens of men attack various blocks of stone. Some use electric stone cutters to sheer through thick slabs, while others employ heavy mallets and picks to hew out rough forms. Still others crouch low, carefully chipping away at carvings of dragons, phoenixes, lions and turtles.

Located four kilometers from the provincial capital of Ninh Binh, the village of Ninh Van is heralded as the birthplace of Vietnamese stone carving. Using marble and dolomite from Ninh Binh and the neighboring province of Thanh Hoa, the villagers of Ninh Van have helped to create and restore some of the most famous structures in Vietnam. Their carvings adorn the temple of the Hung Kings in Phu Tho province, the Perfume Pagoda in Ha Tay, the Catholic cathedral of Phat Diem in Ninh Binh, and Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum in Ha Noi.

A small boat chugs past on the canal while, under and awning, two young men play chess on a stone chessboard. "To day, as living standards improve, more villagers can live off stone carving", says the yard's owner, chipping away at a stone turtle the size of a bathtub.

In fact, some 1,000 of the villagers 10,000 residents now work as stone carvers, earning from VND300,000 to VND1,000,000 per month. Most of these people also cultivate rice.

In the heat of the midday sun, the village falls quiet, but for the quacking of the ducks on the canal and the sound of light tapping. Crouched on his front stoop, an old man uses s sharp metal ve, a steel-tipped tool that looks like a pencil, to etch cranes and flowers onto a stone tablet. "It will take two days to finish", he says, pointing towards a row of lavishly carved tablets that are already complete. "For four panels, I will earn VND300,000".

Some young women from Hanoi crouch beside me, watching the old man work. It is getting late and the driver is anxious to leave. But we all sit, mesmerized by the old matter's wrinkled hands, which seem as ancient, and as delicate, as the pattern he carves.

Getting there

To get to Ninh Van village, take Highway 1 out from Hanoi for 120 km towards Ninh Binh. At Phu Yen Bridge, turn right, and then drive 10km to Ninh Van.