Unique hobby of collecting dragon mascots

Preserving the national soul

On the days leading up to the Lunar New Year of Giap Thin 2024, reporters of Giao Thong Newspaper had the opportunity to meet members of antique clubs in Nam Dinh, admiring unique dragon mascot collections with diverse designs, materials, and historical dates that members of the UNESCO Club have devoted their hearts to researching, collecting, and preserving.

Mr. Trieu Thanh Son introduces his collection of ancient mascots to Giao Thong Newspaper reporters.

Talking to Giao Thong Newspaper reporter, Mr. Trieu Thanh Son (41 years old), Vice President of UNESCO Club said that inheriting his grandfather's passion, since childhood, he has collected artifacts such as bowls and plates from many different eras.

Not following the trend of collecting ancient Chinese artifacts, Mr. Son specializes in collecting purely Vietnamese artifacts. Among them, many of his ancient artifacts have dragon shapes, such as: dragon smoking bowls, incense burners, bricks, tiles, Bodhi leaves...

Among them, the dragon-shaped Bodhi leaf, glazed with yellow glaze (golden enamel) from the Ly - Tran dynasty, is unique because it is a component of the ancient Thang Long Imperial Citadel architecture. The highlight of the Bodhi leaf is the image of a dragon, surrounded by detailed fire and cloud images.

Another dragon-shaped antique that Mr. Son is keeping is a Mac Dynasty incense burner, which is considered a rare artifact at the present time. The dragon in this incense burner has fins, feathers, and surrounding cloud and fire motifs.

One of Mr. Son's memories while collecting antiques is the journey of pairing a blue-glazed dragon-patterned bowl and pipe dating from the 19th century.

"At first, I only collected bowls, then tried to pair them with other types of pipes but they were all unsuitable. After more than 10 years, during the process of exchanging antiques in Ninh Binh, I was able to collect intact semi-porcelain blue enamel pipes. After pairing, the bowl set with Nguyen Dynasty dragon motifs created a unique set of two dragons with scattered clouds because of the suitable size and similar colors," Mr. Son shared.

Collection of ancient mascots of Mr. Tran Quoc Hung, member of UNESCO Club.

Mr. Tran Quoc Hung (50 years old), a member of the UNESCO Club, is admired by professionals for his collection of antiques of diverse types and designs, and of rare historical value.

Mr. Hung said that since 1990, he has sought out seniors who are into antiques to learn from them about their experiences in collecting antiques. After that, his job as a driver gave him the opportunity to travel to many places and his journey of collecting antiques officially began from here.

Mr. Hung has many collections of pottery, stone, glazed bricks... Among them are many rare dragon mascots. The green-glazed dragon head of the Tran Dynasty that Mr. Hung collected in 2013 is considered by antique experts to be unique. The artifact was originally placed on the threshold of the Tran Dynasty palace and is the largest light-fired green-glazed antique that remains intact to this day.

"The biggest characteristic of the light green glaze is that it only existed during the Ly - Tran period. Light green glaze is the most difficult glaze to fire, only skilled craftsmen can fire it, because if the temperature is too high, the pottery will change to a different glaze color. During the Le Dynasty, the secret to making light green glaze was lost, so craftsmen only made apple green glaze," said Mr. Hung.

Heavy on the value of pure Vietnamese artifacts

What fascinated Mr. Hung about this artifact was that it was a dragon head typical of the rice civilization, represented by the round hole in the dragon's mouth to attach a water nozzle.

One of the other artifacts that Mr. Hung kept is a dragon head from the Ly - Tran dynasty, 85cm high. The dragon head is made of terracotta, unglazed, decorated with many motifs, and was used on the roof of the royal palace during the Ly - Tran dynasty.

Recently, Mr. Hung collected a dragon head from the Le Dynasty made from black clay that is still quite intact.

In addition to the dragon head, Mr. Hung also collected many unique dragon carvings and engravings, the most notable of which is the Ly Dynasty's yellow glazed Bodhi leaf. The Bodhi leaf has a soft, sinuous dragon motif; From the shape to the lines of the pattern, there is a high level of consistency, showing synchronization with the strict shaping rules typical of the Ly Dynasty.

Mr. Tran Quoc Hung (far right), member of the UNESCO Club for Research, Collection and Conservation of Nam Dinh Antiquities, introduces the terracotta dragon head from the Ly - Tran Dynasty.

Mr. Bui Van Quang, a member of the UNESCO Club, said that on each royal decree of each dynasty, the image of a dragon is printed and drawn hidden in each royal decree, magnificent and majestic, and is a sacred animal symbolizing the emperor.

The content of the royal decree includes the conferment of titles and titles on officials and gods. The dragon image on the royal decree has an important meaning, showing the solemnity in the granting of royal decrees and preventing the counterfeiting of royal decrees during the feudal period.

He spent a lot of time and money to verify the origin of the royal decrees and return them. A typical example is the rare ancient royal decree granted by King Thieu Tri of the Nguyen Dynasty to the national hero Hung Dao Dai Vuong Tran Quoc Tuan in 1845, which Mr. Quang handed over to Bao Loc temple, My Phuc commune, My Loc district, Nam Dinh province.

Mr. Quang is particularly interested in the royal decrees and royal edicts of the Le and Nguyen dynasties. Depending on the type of paper, patterns, writing style… printed on the royal decree, we can know which dynasty the decree belongs to, and which rank it is awarded to. The paper used to write the royal decree is Long Dang Am paper with a picture of a 5-clawed dragon…

Because of his limited knowledge of Han Nom, during the collection process he had to read books, documents on the internet and ask for help from friends, researchers at schools and museums to understand the content of the royal decrees.

"To preserve and promote the value of antiques, in recent times, antique collection clubs and associations in the province have regularly organized exchanges, exhibitions, and donations of antiques. That is the basis for antiques, including dragon mascot collections, to be closer to the public, contributing to fostering historical knowledge and national pride for the younger generation," said Mr. Son.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/doc-dao-thu-choi-suu-tam-linh-vat-rong-192240209131648366.htm