Model of a house from the Tran Dynasty

A complete residential complex modeled after the "internal construction, external design" style. (Photo: Bich Hang/Vietnam+)

According to experts, this is the most original, characteristic, and complete architectural model of the Tran Dynasty. (Photo: Bich Hang/Vietnam+)

The decorative motifs, layout, and sculptures are all exquisitely crafted and characteristic of Tran Dynasty architecture. (Photo: Bich Hang/Vietnam+)

The outer surface of the surrounding wall is decorated with a four-petaled rosette pattern. (Photo: Bich Hang/Vietnam+)

Researchers believe that models of houses from the Tran Dynasty were used as technical blueprints before actual construction began. (Photo: Bich Hang/Vietnam+)

The Tran Dynasty (1225-1400) was one of the most glorious and famous feudal dynasties in Vietnamese history. Not only is it remembered for its brilliant military achievements, but the Tran Dynasty also left behind many unique cultural values in art and architecture.

The architecture of the Tran Dynasty was characterized by its rich variety of styles, unified and symmetrical planning, exquisite decoration, and harmony with the surrounding natural landscape.

Not only do religious architectural structures such as communal houses, pagodas, and towers still remain today, but the terracotta model of a Tran Dynasty house discovered in Nam Dinh province is a precious treasure that provides us with a clear picture of the sophisticated architectural thinking of the ancient Vietnamese people.

The architectural model of a Tran Dynasty house was discovered in 1973 when a local resident was digging near the Chieng mausoleum in Lai Xa village, Hien Khanh commune, Vu Ban district, and found strange fragments of ancient terracotta pottery.

Upon receiving the information, the Ha Nam Ninh Provincial Museum then sent people to the site, where they stayed for a whole month to continue searching for other pottery fragments.

Archaeologists were delighted to find all 14 pottery fragments, which, when pieced together, formed a sophisticated and intact model of a terracotta house.

To ensure accuracy, they dug nearly half a meter deep into the ground, searching for traces of the printed model in the soil, then placed the model down to fit perfectly into these traces in order to reconstruct it exactly as it was originally.

Subsequently, the house model was compared with documents and historical records, and also with two similar terracotta architectural models from the Tran Dynasty found at the Mausoleum of Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan (Bao Loc village, My Phuc commune, My Loc district, Nam Dinh province) and at the Tran Hung Ha Temple complex (Tien Duc commune, Hung Ha district, Thai Binh province) to verify its distinctiveness.

According to researchers, the house model consists of 14 interconnected pieces, representing the architecture of a mansion or tomb of the Trần dynasty nobility in the 13th-14th centuries.

The architectural elements form a complete "inner courtyard, outer enclosure" type house with surrounding walls, two main entrances, a rear house, a stele house, a tower, corridors, and gardens… The decorative motifs, layout, and sculptures are all exquisitely crafted and characteristic of Tran Dynasty architecture.

The entire model house is rectangular, measuring 100cm long and 95cm wide. The exterior consists of eight sections of surrounding wall, with a gate at the front and a four-roofed building in the center of the back wall.

The front walls are carved with chrysanthemum branch patterns; the two walls have two gates, the right gate features a design of two dragons flanking a Bodhi leaf, with the lower part decorated with wave patterns similar to those on the wooden doors of Pho Minh Pagoda; the left gate has a circular mark drawn in the center.

The inner walls are left smooth, marked with symbols for assembly; the outer walls are decorated with four-petaled rosette patterns. The walls have two sloping roofs, with four roofs at the gate. The roofs are covered with tubular tiles and lotus-shaped tiles.

At the heart of the house model is a complex of structures including a rectangular main building with four tiled roofs, a wide veranda, two round columns on either side, and inside are doors decorated with dragon motifs.

Next are two rows of buildings located on either side (in a tube-like shape), perpendicular and resting at one end on the main building. To the right of the main building is the stele house, and to the left is a two-story, four-roofed tower (in the form of a tomb tower) covered with lotus-shaped tiles.

Archaeologists, along with Japanese experts, have studied this site for over 10 years and confirmed that it is the most original, characteristic, and complete architectural model of the Tran Dynasty.

The unique feature of this model, besides its intact shape and clear origin, is the meticulously decorated and exquisitely designed architectural details of the columns, pillars, beams, brackets, and rafters, featuring prominent motifs such as Bodhi leaves, chrysanthemums, and dragons—patterns not found in any other house model in Vietnam.

Previously, archaeologists also found terracotta architectural components such as house model fragments in Bao Loc village, My Phuc commune, My Loc district; sword finials in An Nhan village, Thanh Loi commune, Vu Ban district; and pagoda roof corners at Doi Pagoda, Yen Dong commune, Yen Yen district)...

This confirms that the house model from the Tran Dynasty was used as a technical drawing before actual construction began.

Finding a complete model allows researchers to visualize the actual architecture, as well as the decorative and artistic styles of the Tran Dynasty. In particular, the model is valuable material for scientists and architects to study and reconstruct historical buildings from the Tran Dynasty today.

The terracotta model of a Tran Dynasty house was recognized as a National Treasure by the Prime Minister on December 25, 2015, under Decision No. 2382/QD-TTg, and is currently on display at the Nam Dinh Museum. This is not only a source of pride for Nam Dinh province but also a valuable shared asset of the entire Vietnamese nation.

According to Vietnam+

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