Tra Dong - Where fire and earth crystallize into the quintessence of Vietnamese copper

More than a millennium has passed, the fire of the foundry in Tra Dong village (Thieu Trung commune, Thanh Hoa ) has continued to burn, preserving a sophisticated traditional craft, which alone is enough to define an entire land.

Famous for its majestic Buddha statues, ringing bronze bells and elaborately carved worship objects, Tra Dong is not only a craft village but also a living museum of Vietnamese history and culture.

The golden millennium of the ancient copper village

Tra Dong bronze casting village, located in Thieu Trung commune, Thanh Hoa province, is not only a craft village, but also one of the cradles of Vietnamese bronze casting art.

The history of the village is associated with legendary stories, said to have begun during the Dinh or Tien Le dynasties, with strong and brilliant development under the Ly and Tran dynasties.

Tra Dong has a bronze casting profession that has existed for more than 1,000 years, becoming one of the oldest and most famous bronze casting villages in the country.

According to legend, the person who founded and passed on the bronze casting profession to the villagers was Nguyen Minh Khong (aka Ly Quoc Su, a famous Zen master of the Ly Dynasty) or a founder of the profession, Khong Minh Khong, who had great merit in spreading the sophisticated bronze casting technique.

From generation to generation, the secrets of metallurgy, alloy mixing, mold making, and carving have been strictly preserved by Tra Dong artisans, passed down only to descendants in the village.

Visitors visit the product display area at Tra Dong traditional bronze casting village. (Photo: Le Dong/VNA)

During the feudal period, Tra Dong was famous for producing precious items for the royal court, from Buddhist ritual instruments to royal utensils. The name Tra Dong is not only limited to household items, but is also associated with cultural and spiritual works of national significance.

The secret lies in the "soul of the earth" and the "power of fire"

What makes Dong Tra products different is the perfect combination of sophisticated traditional techniques and special raw materials.

Tra Dong bronze casting art mainly uses clay mold casting method, a technique that requires almost absolute patience and experience.

The Tra Dong bronze casting process is a series of rigorous stages, including:

Modeling: Creating a model with wax or soft material, which determines the shape and spirit of the product.

Mold making: This is a secret step. The mold is made from a mixture of clay, rice husk ash and some secret additives, then fired in a charcoal kiln. The smoothness, durability and heat resistance of the mold determine the quality of the bronze surface when cast.

Copper smelting: Copper is melted at temperatures of thousands of degrees Celsius. Tra Dong artisans have the secret to mixing copper alloys with other metals (such as tin, zinc, lead) in traditional proportions, creating a characteristic color and durability, while helping the molten copper flow evenly, filling every smallest detail of the mold.

Pouring and cooling the copper: This is the decisive moment, requiring absolute precision in time and temperature.

Finishing: After casting, the product is broken into molds, cleaned, polished, and especially carved and polished. It is these delicate, soulful hand-carved lines that create the Dong Tra brand.

The meticulousness and experience of the craftsman is also clearly shown in the creation of Tra Dong bronze alloy - the finished bronze color often has a deep, antique brown shade, not too shiny but has outstanding durability over time.

Tra Dong's mark in historical works

The Tra Dong bronze casting brand is not just empty praise but is proven through specific works of great historical and cultural significance:

The Amitabha Buddha statue at Thay Pagoda is one of the typical works, demonstrating the outstanding statue casting talent of Tra Dong artisan.

Large bronze bells at temples: The sound of Tra Dong bronze bells is deep, resonant, and can travel far, and is trusted by large temples.

Bronze altar and crane set: Tra Dong worship sets are always sought after for their sophistication in the Four Spirits and Eight Immortals patterns, expressing solemnity and traditional worship culture.

Restoration works: In the restoration of historical relics, Tra Dong artisans are always the first choice to recreate ancient bronze artifacts, ensuring originality and historical value.

Keeping the Fire Alive in a Modern Context

Today, Tra Dong craft village not only stands firm but also develops strongly. Despite facing competition from industrial products, artisans here still persevere in maintaining traditional manual casting techniques.

Currently, the village has dozens of households continuing the profession, not only casting worship objects but also expanding to fine art products, souvenirs, and especially casting bronze portrait statues on request.

Using manual casting techniques, especially the method of making molds from crushed clay, Tra Dong bronze casting village has created products such as drums, gongs, worship items, incense burners, statues, and bronze paintings. (Photo: Le Dong/VNA)

In particular, with love and passion, the bronze casting artisans of Tra Dong village have researched, researched, and successfully cast bronze drums using traditional manual methods with many different sizes, which have been highly appreciated by domestic and foreign scientists , from the bronze drum with Ngoc Lu version and patterns in 2000, the largest bronze drum in Vietnam with a drum face diameter of 1.51m, height of 1.21m in 2007 to the Ngoc Lu version bronze drum considered the largest in the world weighing about 8 tons, height of 2m, drum face diameter of 2.7m in 2013...

In 2010, the collective of artisans from Tra Dong bronze casting village participated in casting 100 bronze drums to offer to the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long - Hanoi .

The products of Tra Dong bronze casting artisans have contributed to enriching Vietnamese culture, making it more advanced and imbued with national identity. Through the ups and downs of time and history, the traditional bronze casting craft of Che village still retains its unique and distinctive features that cannot be found anywhere else.

With those typical values, on September 4, 2018, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued Decision No. 3325, announcing the list of national intangible cultural heritages, in which, the traditional bronze casting craft of Che village (Tra Dong) in Thieu Trung commune, Thieu Hoa district, Thanh Hoa province, now Thieu Trung commune, Thanh Hoa province, is one of the 8 heritages recognized as national intangible cultural heritages this time.

Tra Dong bronze casting has been recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, affirming the historical and cultural value of the craft village. This recognition is not only a source of pride but also a driving force for local authorities and artisans to promote conservation work, while expanding the craft village tourism model.

Visitors to Tra Dong can not only buy exquisite bronze products but also have a rare opportunity to witness the entire traditional bronze casting process - from preparing the soil, creating models, to pouring the fiery molten bronze.

Tra Dong bronze casters are doing a quiet but extremely meaningful job: they are not only creating bronze items, but also "casting" the cultural heritage, spirit and identity of the Vietnamese people, ensuring that the flame from more than a thousand years ago will continue to burn brightly for future generations./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/tra-dong-noi-lua-va-dat-ket-tinh-thanh-tinh-hoa-dong-viet-post1070995.vnp