The beauty of traditional craft villages in Thanh Hoa

Thanh Hoa is not only known as a place with “golden forests and silver seas”, but also a “convergence” of traditional craft villages hundreds of years old, containing the quintessence of local cultural identity, preserved and passed down through many generations to this day.

The beauty of traditional craft villages in Thanh Hoa Mrs. Ngo Thi Ly, Truong Thanh village, Truong Giang commune (Nong Cong) has devoted all her heart to the profession of making conical hats.

“Please visit Hong Do - Thieu Hoa, visit the hands of many girls, spinning far away to weave the golden moonlight... to whom... Go to Nga Son to buy a pair of mats, to give to whom when spring comes, this Nga Son mat weaves many love stories... couples are already beautiful, even more beautiful...”. The lyrics in the song “The Road to Thanh Hoa” are also an affirmation of the richness of traditional craft villages in Thanh Hoa land. From the plains, the coast to the mountains, everywhere there are traditional craft villages that are respected, preserved and considered a “treasure” by later generations. Typical examples are the villages of civil carpentry, traditional bronze casting, seafood processing, bamboo and rattan weaving, sedge processing, brocade weaving...

Among them, Tra Dong bronze casting village, Thieu Trung commune (Thieu Hoa), is famous for its richness and diversity with many unique and sophisticated products "crystallized" from the minds and skillful hands of the craftsmen. According to the artisans in the village: Since the Ly dynasty, the Vu family brought bronze casting to Tra Dong village. Therefore, in the village there is a saying "Land of the Le family - craft of the Vu family". But some people also say that the bronze casting profession here was taught by Mr. Khong Minh Khong, the founder of bronze casting in our country. And although it has gone through many ups and downs of time, it seemed that at times the fire of the profession had gone out, but thanks to the passion of many artisans who still love and miss the profession, they have continued to stick with the profession and develop it as it is today.

At the bronze casting workshop of Meritorious Artisan Nguyen Ba Chau, the working atmosphere is bustling with the sound of chiseling and hammering of the workers. Mr. Chau shared: No matter what time it is, Tra Dong bronze casting still retains the manual stages and is carried out according to the traditional method passed down from father to son. That not only helps the products to be chosen by customers, but also shows the talented hands and creative minds of the workers. Also because it is handmade, in order to have a standard bronze casting product, the worker must be very careful and meticulous in every detail and stage such as making the mold, mixing the compound, melting the bronze, casting the product... The bronze casting worker must be like a painter, designing the model himself, drawing beautiful patterns into the clay mold as if putting his passion and enthusiasm into it. Then the joy cannot be fully expressed in words when the bronze products are born such as bronze gongs, worship items, incense burners... present in almost all localities in and outside the province. The highest point is the successful research and restoration of bronze drums using traditional manual methods after centuries of loss. The bronze drums and bronze objects here have gone beyond the bamboo fences of the village, carrying the pride of the Ke Che people, contributing to bringing a new look to the craft village... Currently, along with the good organization of production and business activities, the bronze casting craft village is also associated with tourism and services to attract tourists to visit and experience the product making process. From there, helping customers see the quality value of the product to feel secure in choosing to buy.

Each craft village is a long-standing cultural, socio-economic and technical environment, preserving the quintessence of art and production techniques distilled from talented artisans. Coming to the conical hat making village of Truong Giang, Truong Giang commune (Nong Cong), we were immersed in the bustling, warm atmosphere of the people. Every two or three houses gathered together, from adults to children, all eagerly talked, their hands nimbly bending each needle. Each hat made is made with the passion, meticulousness and dexterity of the craftsmen. That is why, although she has been "fated" with the hat making profession since she was a child, but now, at an old age, Mrs. Ngo Thi Ly, Truong Thanh village, Truong Giang commune, still devotes all her "heart and soul" to the profession. While meticulously shaping the hats to make them more vivid, Mrs. Ly talked to us: "No one remembers exactly when the hat-making profession here began, they just know that it was born. For those who do the job, this is not only a job to make a living but also a family profession that has been preserved for many generations. The conical hats here are harmonious and balanced with a pointed shape, a moderately wide brim, both soft and durable, and a characteristic bright white color. To make a beautiful and durable product - a work of art is an art of the craftsman from choosing the frame, bending the brim, covering the leaves, cutting the patterns, to weaving to complete the hat and finally polishing and preserving. Perhaps thanks to the meticulousness, care and skill of the craftsmen in each stage, Truong Giang hats are very popular with tourists. Thanks to that, the hat-making profession has helped many local families have a stable life.

Through the changes of time and history, craft villages are still places to preserve unique, sophisticated handicraft products bearing the cultural imprint of the locality. Therefore, in order to preserve the cultural quintessence of craft villages, in recent times, localities in the province have paid special attention to and focused on investing in the restoration, embellishment and reconstruction of architectural works, cultural activities - folk beliefs in craft villages. The cultural beauty of craft villages such as customs, beliefs of worshipping ancestors... have always been concerned with preservation and development. Along with that, localities and craftsmen have paid attention to combining craft villages and tourism activities, contributing to diversifying tourism products, promoting cultural traditions, history, the talents of craft village artisans and supporting "on-site export", solving output for craft village products...

Article and photos: Nguyen Dat

Source