Preserving the color of a hundred-year heritage

Many horizontal lacquered boards and parallel sentences in Binh Thien Communal House Relic (Bien Hoa City) have been preserved and restored with gold lacquer. Photo: L.Na

Not only does it revive the original beauty of artifacts and preserve the color of a hundred-year-old heritage, but through the preservation and restoration of gilded lacquer, it also contributes to preserving and promoting the cultural values of relics and connecting tourism development.

Efforts to revive the original beauty of relics

Phuoc Lu Communal House is one of the communal houses that has existed and developed for over 200 years, associated with the formation and development of Phuoc Lu village, Bien Hoa town in the past (now Trung Dung ward, Bien Hoa city). It has been preserved, restored with red lacquer, and gilded with many horizontal lacquered boards, parallel sentences, and worshiping boards.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Duc, who has been taking care of Phuoc Lu Communal House for more than 5 years, said that local people are very excited that the horizontal lacquered boards and parallel sentences at the relic have been preserved and restored with gold lacquer. Not only has the preservation and restoration extended the lifespan of the artifacts, but the preservation and restoration have also revived the beauty of the artifacts, returning them to their original elements.

“In addition to preserving and restoring the gilded lacquer, some items of the relic are currently deteriorating, such as: the damaged porch causing leaks, wooden pillars are infested with termites... The relic management board hopes to soon receive approval from authorities at all levels for restoration and embellishment to avoid further damage,” Mr. Duc shared.

The Binh Quan communal house relic (in Hiep Hoa ward, Bien Hoa city) was built around the 19th century with the name Binh Quan martial temple. The communal house was ranked as a provincial historical and cultural relic in 2004. After a long time of existence with hot and humid weather conditions and heavy rain, the horizontal lacquered boards, parallel sentences, worshiping panels, and arched doors made of wood, painted with red and gold lacquer have now deteriorated, rotten, moldy, and termite-infested. The entire surface of the above artifacts has been covered with industrial paint. Some parallel sentences and horizontal lacquered boards are cracked, and the mortise and tenon joints are damaged; including 6 pairs of parallel sentences in the main hall, Ba temple, memorial house, 13 altar panels, 5 horizontal lacquered panels, 5 arched doors, etc.

On May 14, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism sent a document to the Provincial People's Committee and proposed that the Provincial People's Committee assign Dong Nai Museum to be the investor and implement the Project of Preservation, restoration, and gilding of lacquered boards, parallel sentences, worshiping boards, and votive doors at Binh Quan Communal House Relic. The funding for implementation comes from the provincial budget (public service source).

In the coming time, when there is a decision to rearrange administrative units according to Conclusion No. 137-KL/TW dated March 28, 2025 of the Politburo and the Secretariat on the Project on Rearranging and Reorganizing Administrative Units at All Levels and Building a 2-Level Local Government Organization Model, the Department will advise on adjusting Decision No. 13-2023/QD-UBND dated April 6, 2023 on promulgating regulations on decentralization of management of historical - cultural relics and ranked scenic spots in Dong Nai province to suit the actual situation and projects using career resources and public investment capital in accordance with regulations.

The Provincial People's Committee has just issued a decision to supplement the list of ranked relics and scenic spots in the province for the period 2021-2025. According to the decision, Tap Phuoc - Phuoc Hoa communal house (in Long Phuoc commune, Long Thanh district) is added to the list of ranked relics. With this addition, Dong Nai has 13 ranked relics and scenic spots for the period 2021-2025.

Promoting the cultural value of relics

Dong Nai currently has more than 70 ranked relics, many of which have degraded horizontal lacquered boards, parallel sentences, and worshiping boards that have been preserved and restored with gilded lacquer. Some of the relics include: Binh Thien communal house, Tan Lan communal house (Bien Hoa city); Phu My communal house (Nhon Trach district); Phuoc Loc communal house (Long Thanh district)...

The horizontal lacquered boards, parallel sentences, and worshiping tablets at Phu My Communal House Relic (Phu Hoi Commune, Nhon Trach District) were restored with gilded lacquer after a long period of deterioration.

With many years of experience in preserving and gilding artifacts in the system of communal houses and temples in and outside the province, Mr. Le Hoang Vu (residing in Quarter 6, Trung Dung Ward, Bien Hoa City) said that gilding restoration is not simply about returning the original elements, but also a process that requires a deep understanding of traditional fine arts, materials and religious customs. From cleaning the wood, treating termites, to gilding..., every step must strictly follow the heritage conservation process.

“Many ancient temples and shrines, after being restored and gilded, not only shine brightly in appearance, but also become community connection points. These are places where local people organize festivals, educate about traditions and attract tourists from near and far to visit and learn about the culture and history of the nation,” said Mr. Vu.

Preserving the color of a century-old heritage is not only the work of the cultural sector or the government, but also comes from the love for heritage of each citizen. In Dong Nai, that journey is still continuing at many relics. Each time it is restored, each layer of "golden glory" is restored, the past is called back by name. It is not only preserving objects, but also preserving memories and community identity. And that journey is still as persistent as the cultural source that has never stopped flowing.

Ly Na

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/van-hoa/202505/giu-mau-cho-di-san-tram-nam-62d509c/