National treasure Nine Tripod Cauldrons in Hue Imperial Citadel

The Nine Tripod Cauldrons are nine bronze cauldrons ordered to be crafted by King Minh Mang, starting casting in December 1835 and completed in 1837.

Each peak has a separate name, including: Cao peak, Nhan peak, Chuong peak, Anh peak, Nghi peak, Tuyen peak, Huyen peak, Thuan peak, Du peak.

The Nine Dynastic Urns are currently located in the courtyard of The To Temple, behind Hien Lam Pavilion, inside Hue Imperial Citadel, and were recognized as National Treasures in 2012.

After 200 years, through many devastating wars, the Nine Tripod Cauldrons are still intact as they were when they were first set up. These are the original and only ones, never repaired, not even in the smallest detail. Therefore, they have unique value and cannot be replaced.

On each peak are carved 17 motifs and 1 calligraphy, including themes of the universe, mountains, rivers, birds, animals, products, weapons, etc., forming a panoramic picture of the unified Vietnam during the Nguyen Dynasty.

Placed in the center is the Cao Dinh, corresponding to the posthumous name of King Gia Long (The To Cao Hoang De, real name Nguyen Phuc Anh).

On the top of the Cao Dinh are carved images of the sun, the East Sea, Thien Ton Mountain, Nguu Chu River, Vinh Te River, pheasants, tigers, turtles, dragons, purple flowers, jackfruit, rice seeds, agarwood, ironwood, onions, boats with many strings, and large guns.

Taking Cao Dinh as the standard, on the left side are: Nhan Dinh, corresponding to the posthumous name of King Minh Mang (Thanh To Nhan Hoang De); Anh Dinh is the posthumous name of King Tu Duc (Duc Tong Anh Hoang De); Thuan Dinh is the posthumous name of King Dong Khanh (Canh Tong Thuan Hoang De) and Du Dinh does not correspond to the posthumous name of any Nguyen Dynasty king.

On the right side are: Chapter cauldron, corresponding to the posthumous name of King Thieu Tri (Emperor Hien To Chuong); Nghi cauldron, corresponding to the posthumous name of King Kien Phuc (Emperor Gian Tong Nghi); Tuyen cauldron, corresponding to the posthumous name of King Khai Dinh (Emperor Hoang Tong Tuyen) and Huyen cauldron, not corresponding to any king's posthumous name.

According to the Hue Monuments Conservation Center, of the 13 Nguyen Dynasty kings, 6 were not given temple names or posthumous names, including: Duc Duc, Hiep Hoa, Ham Nghi, Thanh Thai, Duy Tan, and Bao Dai.

In particular, among the 9 peaks, there are 3 peaks that King Minh Mang had engraved images of the sea to represent the whole picture of Vietnam's sea and islands: the East Sea at Cao peak; the South Sea at Nhan peak and the West Sea at Chuong peak, which are the 3 largest and most important peaks.

Close-up of the reliefs on the Nine Bronze Urns in Hue Imperial Citadel, a documentary heritage of the Asia-Pacific region recently recognized by UNESCO.

According to the Hue Monuments Conservation Center, of the 162 embossed motifs on the bronze peaks of the Nguyen Dynasty, 90 images are of animals and plants typical of Vietnam.

The motifs and patterns show a very high level and sophisticated craftsmanship of our country's bronze casting artisans under the Nguyen Dynasty.

According to the book "Kham dinh Dai Nam hoi dien su le", the Nine Tripod Cauldrons were cast in the traditional manual way, so the molds were created manually. To avoid copying, after the casting was completed, all the molds were destroyed.

The Nine Tripod Cauldrons of Hue are unique works of art, of high cultural and historical value to the Vietnamese people, containing the ideological content of an era, people's thoughts and ideas about the country, the universe and nature.

In the world, there are few cases where the same relic site is recognized by UNESCO with many noble titles like the Complex of Hue Monuments.

On May 8, the bronze plates cast on nine bronze cauldrons in Vietnam's Hue Imperial Palace were officially listed as UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Documentary Heritage, bringing the total number of Vietnam's recorded documentary heritages to 10.

Thua Thien Hue alone has 8 heritages recognized by UNESCO as world heritages and regional heritages.

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/xa-hoi/bao-vat-quoc-gia-cuu-dinh-trong-hoang-thanh-hue-20240802152635943.htm