Come to Hoi An, admire the collection of stamps, coins, banknotes and the Tale of Kieu at CSO Gallery

Opening to welcome visitors in mid-late January 2024, CSO Gallery (Cua Dai Street, Hoi An City) is a space of Vietnamese records, bringing many interesting surprises about Vietnamese and world culture and history in the fields of stamps, coins, paper money and the Tale of Kieu.

CSO Gallery at 229 Cua Dai Street, Hoi An City. Photo: VL

Located at 229 Cua Dai Street (Hoi An City), CSO Gallery is a 3-storey house divided into 6 areas displaying 77 collections, including Kieu stories, coins, banknotes, stamps from Vietnam and 200 countries around the world . The total number of more than 20,000 items ranges from 50 years to over 2,000 years old.

The most impressive are the collections on the theme of the Tale of Kieu. The museum currently displays more than 10 collections with 1,630 publications and more than 600 publications published in newspapers, magazines, pictures, etc. Notable are the editions of the Tale of Kieu written in Nom script and manuscripts; the late 19th and 20th century editions of the Tale of Kieu; the foreign editions of the Tale of Kieu published in 16 countries (England, France, Germany, USA, Russia, Italy, Sweden, Greece, Poland, Hungary, Korea, Japan, Syria, etc.); the edition of the Tale of Kieu collection by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh; Kieu paintings; Kieu artifacts (art stones, porcelain vases, CDs, etc.), the Tale of Kieu calendar, the Tale of Kieu in fashion , etc.

The museum displays and introduces more than 10 collections with 1,630 publications of the Tale of Kieu. Photo: VL

The second floor of the museum is a space to display 58 collections of rare coins and banknotes. The largest are coins with 47 collections. Some of the collections are quite unique such as animal coins, a collection of coins printed with Islamic years (AH year), a collection of German and Japanese porcelain coins, a collection of British Queen coins, a collection of ancient coins from Vietnam and China, Japan, India, Korea, France, Italy, Switzerland, etc.

Among them, the collection of ancient Vietnamese coins from the reign of King Dinh Tien Hoang (980) to the Nguyen Dynasty (1945) is considered to be the oldest known today.

Paper money alone is quite impressive with 11 collections such as overprinted paper money (1902-1989), Vietnamese paper money (1903-1994), women's paper money (1883-2018), emergency paper money, military paper money (17th century - 1973), smallest and largest paper money (1896 - 1941), paper money with the largest denomination...

More than 10 banknote collections are on display at the CSO Gallery. Photo: VL

The space displays valuable thematic stamp collections such as the world horse stamp collection (1891 - 2017), the world overprint stamp collection - colonies and occupations (1873 - 1973), President Ho Chi Minh stamps (1956-2020), impression stamps and perforated stamps, dog breeding stamps in Ireland (1898 - 1904), American fishing stamps, hunting stamps, potato harvest tax stamps, mineral tax stamps... SCO Gallery is like a miniature world of colorful, vivid postage stamps from ancient to modern.

In addition, CSO Gallery also displays and introduces a number of thematic collections such as British Regimental badges in World War I and II (1881-1969), clocks that can display time in 200 countries around the world, lucky coin trees, etc.

According to Mr. Tran Huu Tai - Director of CSO Gallery, cultural heritage is not only the artifacts displayed in glass cabinets, but also historical stories, spiritual values conveyed vividly and emotionally. CSO Gallery is a journey back in time, discovering those unique cultural heritages.

“ If the editions of the Tale of Kieu show the Vietnamese people’s respect and preservation of the national literary treasure, then currency plays an important role in human life, reflecting the economic, political and cultural changes of humanity. Meanwhile, each stamp is a story, a childhood memory, the ups and downs of the years. By establishing CSO Gallery, we want to promote the cultural and historical values that the artifacts bring, because each artifact contains its own historical story”. Mr. Tran Huu Tai

Mr. Tran Huu Tai (50 years old) is also a famous collector who has been recognized by the Vietnam Book of Records with two records: the person who collects the most Kieu stories in Vietnam (2022) and the person who sets the Vietnam record for horse mascot stamp collection (2023).

CSO Gallery is not only a tourist attraction but also helps convey Vietnamese cultural and historical values to visitors and viewers, especially the younger generation. Photo: VL

To have these valuable collections, Mr. Tran Huu Tai spent effort, money and more than 20 years traveling everywhere in and out of the country, including learning Chinese characters and researching ancient documents to satisfy his passion and desire to preserve the values and quintessence of humanity.

Source: https://baodanang.vn/den-hoi-an-chiem-nguong-bo-suu-tap-tem-tien-xu-tien-giay-va-truyen-kieu-tai-cso-gallery-3131723.html