Mr. Tran Dinh Thang, Director of Nhat Viet Company Limited, owner of Vento Vietnam footwear brand, is known as a successful businessman, a member of the Central Executive Committee of the Vietnam Heritage Association, General Secretary of the Hai Phong Antiquities Association, and a famous researcher and collector of antiques in Hai Phong and the whole country. Few people know that, coming from a family with a revolutionary tradition, Mr. Thang quietly shows his patriotism and love for the Port City through the preservation and promotion of 18 national treasures - "national soul" and other typical "cultural quintessence" of Hai Phong, adding to the tradition of the land of patriotic businessmen at the estuary...
Acting President Vo Thi Anh Xuan meets with Vietnamese Heritage makers in 2023. (Mr. Tran Dinh Thang, far right).
The heart of a patriot
At the conference on the implementation of the display of national treasures in the Red Flamboyant Festival - Hai Phong 2024 held on the afternoon of March 13, Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee Le Khac Nam continued to acknowledge Mr. Tran Dinh Thang as a person with many important contributions to the preservation and promotion of Hai Phong's cultural heritage. "I have known Mr. Thang since I was very young. If that year, he had not devoted all his heart to research and collecting antiques but spent money to buy land, he could have bought the whole street and become one of the richest people in Vietnam today...", the Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee happily commented. Recognizing Mr. Tran Dinh Thang's contributions, the city awarded a Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the City People's Committee in 2023 and is proposing that the Government reward him in 2024.
When asked to share about the opportunity to research and collect antiques, Mr. Thang just smiled: "I love antiques, I want to preserve the quintessence of Vietnamese culture, perhaps it comes from family tradition...". Born in Binh Luc commune, Ha Nam province, Mr. Thang's father, Mr. Tran Dinh Thanh, joined the revolution in 1930. In 1955, when the city was liberated, Mr. Tran Dinh Thanh was one of the cadres who took over Hai Phong. Mr. Thang's family has lived and been attached to the Port City since then. Trained in the former Soviet Union since 1973, Tran Dinh Thang returned to Vietnam to work at the Vietnam Maritime Agency. After that, he boldly established Nhat Viet Company Limited, producing Vietnamese-branded shoes for export. To date, Vento is the only enterprise in Hai Phong that exports an average of 500,000 Vietnamese-branded products to more than 20 countries around the world each year. After 25 years of operation, the enterprise has brought the city a revenue of more than 50 million USD, creating jobs for nearly 500 local workers. Continuing the revolutionary tradition of his family, receiving basic training and having a successful business career, Mr. Thang has always been concerned with preserving the heritage - the soul of the nation. Since studying abroad, instead of traveling and having fun like his peers, he has spent most of his free time going to museums to learn about the cultural and historical heritage of humanity. At the age of 25, when he returned home, he began collecting antiques...
Not only owning the An Bien Collection and 18 national treasures, Mr. Tran Dinh Thang is also devoted to the work of preserving and promoting cultural heritage: In 2020, he donated an 18th-century bronze incense burner and 300 million VND to restore and embellish the An Bien Communal House (Le Chan District). In 2022, he contributed funds and participated in the restoration and embellishment of the historical relic at the Temple of General Le Chan, Kim Bang District (Ha Nam Province) along with many other meaningful activities...
Preserving the "national soul"
Recognizing the high value of Ly Dynasty white-glazed ceramics, from 1985 to 1995, accompanied by Mr. Motohiko Yamazaki, Head of Toyota in Vietnam and Mr. Nguyen Ba Thanh Long, Executive Committee Member of the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Association, Mr. Thang traveled across Vietnam to buy hundreds of these artifacts. Of which, 9 artifacts reached the pinnacle of artistic craftsmanship, containing the thoughts, concepts, ethics, and worlds of the Vietnamese Buddhist monarchy, and were selected to make a dossier to propose the Government to consider and recognize them as national treasures at the end of 2021. The Red Flamboyant Festival - Hai Phong 2022, introduced for the first time at Hai Phong Museum, An Bien Collection and 9 national treasures of Ly Dynasty white-glazed ceramics received the attention of researchers, collectors, and antique lovers nationwide and internationally. Also in this year, Mr. Thang built a dossier and procedures to request the Prime Minister to recognize 6 more personally owned artifacts as national treasures. In 2023, 3 more artifacts in the An Bien Collection were recognized as national treasures, bringing the total number of national treasures in the An Bien Collection to 18.
After 40 years of collecting, Mr. Tran Dinh Thang has never counted how many artifacts he has. He named his collection An Bien Collection - the first name of Hai Phong given by General Le Chan when establishing the land of "Hai Tan Phong". Recently, he continued to select 369 artifacts, created a scientific profile to register with the Department of Culture and Sports of Hai Phong, divided into four groups: Antiques of the Dai Viet State, 11th-19th century; Chinese antiques, 9th-19th century; antiques from the Northern domination period, 5th century BC to 9th century and a set of wooden and stone Buddha statues from the 17th-19th century. The An Bien Collection has been displayed at the Vietnam National Museum of History, Hai Phong Museum, and published in many domestic and foreign press publications. To own this massive amount of cultural resources, Mr. Thang spent a lot of effort, time and money. Most of the profits from his shoe business and production are spent on purchasing and preserving antiques. Because in addition to his passion, collecting antiques is also an investment in the country's cultural resources. From these resources, he opens up many opportunities in life and business. Owning many national treasures, Mr. Thang almost never lets his image appear next to them. "National treasures are national assets, I am just a lucky person to keep them. Later, when I am no longer healthy enough to take care of them, I hope there will be an individual or organization with enough heart and vision to inherit and promote the value of this heritage," he shared his wish.
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