An Dinh Palace by the An Cuu River

Unique architecture

An Dinh Palace was the private residence of Emperor Khai Dinh, located on the banks of the An Cuu River, formerly in De Bat Ward, Hue City, now at 97 Phan Dinh Phung Street, Hue City. In the 14th year of Thanh Thai's reign (1902), Phung Hoa Cong Nguyen Phuc Buu Dao (later Emperor Khai Dinh) established a residence and named it An Dinh Palace. In the 2nd year of Khai Dinh's reign (1917), the new emperor used his own funds to renovate it into a palace in a modern architectural style. After the August Revolution of 1945, the family of former Emperor Bao Dai moved from the Imperial Palace to live in An Dinh Palace. After 1975, Empress Dowager Tu Cung donated An Dinh Palace to the revolutionary government. To this day, the site is managed and its value is promoted by the Hue Imperial Citadel Relics Conservation Center.

An Dinh Palace faces south, towards the An Cuu River. The palace is situated on flat terrain, with a total area of ​​over 23,000 square meters. When intact, An Dinh had about 10 structures, from front to back: the boat landing, the main gate, Trung Lap Pavilion, Khai Tuong Tower, Cuu Tu Dai Theater, the animal enclosure, and the lake... Currently, only three structures remain relatively intact: the main gate, Trung Lap Pavilion, and Khai Tuong Tower. The main gate is a two-tiered, three-arched structure, elaborately decorated with embossed ceramic tiles. Trung Lap Pavilion, located inside the gate, has an octagonal structure with a raised platform. Originally, the pavilion housed a life-sized bronze statue of King Khai Dinh, cast in 1920.

Tourists visiting An Dinh Palace

Khai Tuong Pavilion is a massive structure resembling a medieval European castle. The pavilion covers an area of ​​745 square meters, comprising three floors and 22 rooms, including living quarters, bedrooms, and a worship area. The outstanding value of Khai Tuong Pavilion lies in its interior wall decorations and exterior relief sculptures; notably, six murals depict scenes from five royal tombs: Gia Long Tomb, Minh Mang Tomb, Thieu Tri Tomb, Tu Duc Tomb, and two murals depicting the tomb of King Dong Khanh, the father of King Khai Dinh. These murals were restored with the assistance of German heritage conservation experts.

Since 2014, the Hue Imperial Citadel Conservation Center (BTDTCĐ) has been exhibiting the Khai Tuong Pavilion at An Dinh Palace, a first step towards An Dinh becoming an entrance-based tourist attraction in April 2015. Besides the unique and well-preserved architectural structures, visitors to An Dinh can also learn about "The residence of the Empress Dowager and the family of Emperor Bao Dai during the period 1945-1955," with nearly 100 original artifacts and a recreated living space of the Emperor's family during this period.

Waiting for a breakthrough

In the plan to develop services based on promoting the value of the Hue Imperial City relics, from 2012 to 2020, An Dinh Palace is expected to receive investment in appropriate infrastructure to organize cultural and artistic activities, exhibitions, and displays. In addition to the exhibition space in Khai Tuong Lau, exhibition and service business activities will be organized in conjunction with museums, handicrafts, and souvenirs. The Cuu Tu Dai Theater will be restored to host performances of traditional art forms…

Over the years, although the Hue Center for Conservation of Cultural Heritage has organized many activities to make An Dinh Palace an attractive destination, the number of visitors to this site has remained modest. Even on the day when admission was completely free for Vietnamese visitors to the Hue Imperial Citadel complex, An Dinh only received about 50 visitors.

According to Mr. Phan Thanh Hai, Director of the Hue Imperial Citadel Conservation Center, service activities at An Dinh Palace have not seen any breakthroughs because this destination is relatively isolated from the Hue Imperial Citadel Complex, limiting the arrangement of tours and itineraries. Previously, there were investors who wanted to develop services here through a completely socialized model, but it was unsuccessful due to concerns about the sustainable preservation and development of An Dinh Palace. With a collaborative approach, the Center is planning to cooperate with another enterprise to develop service activities at An Dinh Palace, focusing on opening restaurants specializing in Hue-style cuisine , and coordinating the display and sale of souvenirs and handicrafts characteristic of Hue. In addition, the Cuu Tu Dai Theater will also be studied for restoration and adaptation to become a cultural and artistic performance venue for tourists.

Text and photos: DONG VAN

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/du-lich/danh-lam-thang-canh/cung-an-dinh-diem-vang-du-lich-cho-danh-thuc-55121.html