Receiving the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Certificate "Phu Gia horse hat weaving craft"

Presenting the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Certificate "Phu Gia Horse Hat Making Craft" to the Party Committee and authorities of Phu Cat district. (Photo: VNA)

On September 12, in Cat Tuong commune, Phu Cat district (Binh Dinh), the Ceremony to receive the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Certificate "Phu Gia horse hat weaving craft" took place, organized by the Provincial Department of Culture and Sports in coordination with the People's Committee of Phu Cat district.

At the ceremony, authorized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism , the leaders of the Provincial People's Committee awarded the Certificate of National Intangible Cultural Heritage "Phu Gia horse hat weaving craft" to the Party Committee and government of Phu Cat district.

Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Binh Dinh Province Lam Hai Giang emphasized that this event is both a source of pride for the Party Committee, government and people of Phu Cat district in particular and the province in general, and an opportunity to honor the heritage of "Phu Gia horse hat weaving", honor the community, especially the artisans who have made great contributions to preserving and promoting the value of the heritage, and enhance the responsibility of preservation among generations.

This is the 5th National Intangible Cultural Heritage (after Traditional Martial Arts, Hat Boi, Bai Choi, Ba Pagoda Festival - Nuoc Man Port) of Binh Dinh province to be listed. Therefore, the province hopes to receive support and assistance from all levels and sectors, and the consensus of the community so that "Phu Gia horse hat making craft" will last forever and spread more and more in the cultural flow of the nation.

“Phu Cat district needs to proactively coordinate with relevant sectors to plan the overall and detailed plan for traditional craft villages; in which, pay special attention to traditional designs and spaces for using horse hats to form types of services for tourism. In addition, the district needs to promote the development of horse hat craft villages, connect with organizations and travel companies to better serve the needs of domestic and foreign tourists for sightseeing and experience as well as expand the market for product consumption…,” Mr. Giang suggested.

Phu Gia craft village currently has about 300 households making horse hats. (Photo: Vu Sinh/VNA)

“Phu Gia horse hat weaving craft” has a history of over 200 years. The whole Cat Tuong commune has about 300 households participating in horse hat production, of which about 260 households are in Phu Gia village.

Phu Gia horse hat is considered a masterpiece of conical hat when associated with the majestic and strong image of the speedy Tay Son army; it is a typical product of costume culture, with high artistic value.

In the past, this type of hat was reserved for the nobility and the upper class in the feudal era with the pattern of “Dragon, unicorn, turtle, phoenix, cloud, lotus…” which looked noble and elegant. When looking at the pattern, one could recognize the rank of the official using it.

Phu Gia horse hats are handmade, going through 10 different stages from creating the frame to traditional embroidery, leaf binding... The hats are made into 10 layers with raw materials such as palm leaves, giang (kidney), pineapple roots... which grow naturally in the forest so they are very durable, can last 150-200 years.

In addition to traditional horse-shaped hats, Phu Gia craft village also produces many types of innovative hats, some materials are also changed to suit market trends.

Nowadays, Phu Gia horse hat products have spread all over the country, the craft village has become a local tourist "highlight".

This craft village has also been recognized as a traditional craft village by the People's Committee of Binh Dinh province, achieving the title of typical craft village of Vietnam. Each market session (5 days/session) has nearly 1,000 horse hats sold. That result is the motivation for artisans to stick with and preserve the profession for a long time./.

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/don-bang-di-san-van-hoa-phi-vat-the-quoc-gia-nghe-cham-non-ngua-phu-gia-post976232.vnp