Hundreds of years old national treasures in Thai Binh

1. The gilded wooden altar throne. The national treasure, the gilded wooden altar throne, was collected at Hai Thon Temple (Xuan Hoa Commune, Vu Thu District, Thai Binh Province) before 1999.

Ngai co nien dai tu the ky 17, duoc suu tam ve Bao tang Thai Binh vao truoc nam 1999 voi kich thuoc lon, hinh dang can doi, hai hoa, gom 4 phan chinh: tay ngai, than ngai, be ngai va phan de ngai.

The throne dates from the 17th century, is large in size, has a balanced and harmonious shape, and consists of four main parts: the throne armrest, the throne body, the throne pedestal, and the throne base.

Ngai duoc cham khac cong phu, tinh xao, hoa van trang tri tren ngai tho son son thep vang. Tong the ngai tho duoc tao tac boi 156 hinh tuong rong. Day la con vat chu dao tren tat ca cac mang trang tri.

The entire throne is made up of 156 dragon images. Besides the delicately carved dragon image, the throne also has many other rich themes such as: flowers, leaves, swords, and sacred animals. Specifically, there are 299 stylized lotus flowers; 33 chrysanthemum flowers; 60 lemon flowers; 65 vines of leaves, bamboo flowers, sacred animals, clouds, fire, precious gems... with a total of 631 decorative motifs on the throne.

Dau tay ngai cham rong trong tu the cuon, quay dau chau bai vi dat tren ngai. Tren hinh vong cung cua tay ngai cham noi bon hinh rong can doi, mat to, mieng rong, rau dai, than va duoi uon luon, cuon lay vanh tay ngai.

The head of the throne is carved with a dragon in a rolled position, facing the tablet placed on the throne. In 2020, the gilded wooden throne (dating from the 17th century, currently kept at Thai Binh Museum) was recognized as a National Treasure by the Prime Minister. Ms. Bui Thi Thanh Mai - Officer of the Professional Department of Thai Binh Museum said that the throne is currently displayed in a central, solemn position at the museum.

Bao vat quoc gia Huong an chua Keo, la hien vat goc doc ban, mang gia tri lich su, van hoa, nghe thuat, co hinh thuc doc dao.

2. Keo Pagoda Incense Altar. National Treasure Keo Pagoda Incense Altar is a unique original artifact, currently preserved at Keo Pagoda in Duy Nhat Commune (Vu Thu District, Thai Binh Province). The altar was created during the Le Trung Hung period, 17th century, and was recognized as a national treasure in 2021.

Rectangular altar table with kneeling legs and fish belly, consisting of 3 main parts: face, body and legs. In particular, due to the large and heavy size of the altar table, the legs are also equipped with horizontal bars, a vertical shaft with a mortise lock and 4 stone wheels, so that it can be pushed and moved when needed.

Hinh tuong rong co 68 do an duoc bo cuc theo nhung de tai “long an van,” “luong long chau nhat”, “long giang”,... cung voi khoang 550 hoa sen, 435 hoa cuc, 24 hoa day, la, truc, linh thu, may lua, ngoc bau…

The dragon image on the altar has 68 designs arranged according to the themes of dragon hidden in clouds, two dragons facing the sun, dragon descending along with about 550 lotus flowers, 435 chrysanthemums, 24 vines, leaves, bamboo, sacred animals, fire clouds, precious gems...

Ngoai bao vat quoc gia Huong an, tai chua Keo con co hai canh cua cham rong (Nien dai: The ky XVII), dat o cua chinh tam quan noi chua Keo tinh Thai Binh, duoc cong nhan la bao vat quoc gia nam 2017. Hien nay, tai di tich quoc gia dac biet chua Keo hai bo canh cua go nay duoc cac nghe nhan phuc dung lai giong nhu nguyen ban. Con bo canh cua chinh goc dang duoc bao quan, trung bay trang trong ngay toa chinh giua cua Bao tang My thuat Viet Nam.

3. Two dragon-carved doors. In addition to the national treasure of the Incense Altar, Keo Pagoda also has two dragon-carved doors (dating from the 17th century), located at the main entrance of Keo Pagoda's inner gate, which were recognized as national treasures in 2017. Currently, at the special national relic of Keo Pagoda, these two sets of wooden doors have been restored by artisans to look exactly like the original. The original set of doors is being preserved and solemnly displayed in the central hall of the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts.

Bo canh cua duoc tao tu hai canh hinh chu nhat, moi canh cua duoc ghep bang 4 mieng go nho.

The door is made of two rectangular panels, each panel is made of four small pieces of wood. On the door is carved a large dragon, a small dragon and a lion. The two large dragons are in a posture of stretching their bodies up towards the middle.