That is the Phu Viet set consisting of two pieces made of painted wood, placed symmetrically on both sides of the incense table in the pagoda hall. Each piece has a total length of 3m long, weighs 45kg and is made of three parts: head, tongue and handle.
This Phu Viet Ministry was officially recognized as a national treasure in 2020 and is currently kept at the temple of King Dinh Tien Hoang in the Special National Relic Complex of Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, Ninh Binh province.
Representatives of the Ninh Binh Provincial Department of Culture and Sports said that this Phu Viet set is crafted based on the image of a war axe. This is one of the types of weapons used as ambushes and boxes belonging to the ritual system at the temples of national heroes, gradually becoming a sacred object in the worship space of Vietnamese people.
The Phu Viet Ministry at the temple of King Dinh Tien Hoang is decorated extremely sophisticatedly, elaborately and stylized, far exceeding the form of a practical weapon to become a unique artistic sculpture.
Specifically, the head of Phu Viet is sculpted in the shape of a large dragon (mother dragon) and five dragon children, gathered together to form a "dragon nest". The mother dragon's body curves into 9 sections, diving downwards, the tail pointing upwards. The five dragon children are also twisted and curved in a similar posture, appearing and disappearing vividly among the dragon mother's flames.
Meanwhile, the dragon's tongue is shaped like a lacquered fire halo spraying from the large dragon's mouth, resembling a war axe blade. The handle (body handle) has an octagonal section with a very large size, one person's hand cannot embrace it.
The Bo Phu Viet at the temple of King Dinh Tien Hoang is a top-notch wooden sculpture, showing the creative talent and skillful hands of 17th-century artisans. The stylization of a weapon into an artwork with a "dragon nest" design not only implies internal strength, but also symbolizes the spirit of solidarity and the aspiration for peace of the Vietnamese nation" - representative of Ninh Binh Department of Culture and Sports said.
Also according to a representative of the Ninh Binh Provincial Department of Culture and Sports, the Vietnamese Ministry at the temple of King Dinh Tien Hoang is a unique original artifact, carrying the special value of the golden age in Vietnamese folk wood carving art in the 17th century. The artifact was created by the court and people of Hoa Lu in the past to make sacrificial objects for worship, in order to honor and commemorate the merits of King Dinh Tien Hoang.
