Brick Journey
In 2003, when embarking on the project to restore the G temple tower group of My Son Relic Site, the biggest challenge at that time was the brick material for the restoration.
War and time have caused most of the temple towers of Group G to collapse and the bricks to crumble. The bricks collected from the excavation process are not enough to reuse for restoration.
Domestic research at this time only stopped at the initial testing stage. Manual brick production facilities stopped completely since the 1990s nationwide. Industrial bricks available on the market are not compatible.
Meanwhile, experts need a large amount of bricks to reinforce, reinforce, supplement and connect during the restoration process. Bricks, a seemingly simple material, became the first issue that Italian (University of Milano) and Vietnamese (Institute of Monuments Conservation) experts focused on researching right at the beginning of the project.
Experts from many fields conducted field research and took samples of original bricks for analysis in the laboratory; at the same time, experimental production was carried out.
Prof. Luigia Binda - Head of the Engineering and Materials Group, University of Milano, recalled: “In 2004, the first experimental production with 100 bricks. Based on the skills of local people, the bricks were made entirely by hand in My Son village, Duy Phu commune. The bricks produced did not ensure quality due to the large amount of clay, lack of heat and too short firing time.
We continued to visit La Thap Ceramics Factory in Duy Hoa Commune. But the brick products were not as expected. Through brick analysis, it was found that the bricks were not handmade but used an extruder, so they were cracked and had a chemical composition quite different from the original bricks. The bricks had white bubbles on the surface when tested at the G5 tower.
Until 2005, brick materials were still a difficult problem, greatly affecting the progress of the project. In the same year, experts visited Mr. Nguyen Qua's production facility in La Thap ceramic area, Duy Hoa commune, Duy Xuyen district.
Based on the requirements, Mr. Qua observed ancient bricks, researched, and produced them experimentally many times. As a result, the bricks produced achieved basic physical and chemical parameters when compared with ancient bricks in My Son.
Achievements of brick restoration
Bricks were used by Italian and Vietnamese experts to restore G1 temple, My Son since 2005. Then used to restore E7 tower in 2013, groups A, H and K from 2017 to 2022.
Mr. Qua also provided bricks for the restoration of some Champa relics in Binh Thuan and Gia Lai provinces. In 2023, bricks were also exported to Laos for the restoration of the ancient temple of Wat Phou.
Since 2005, there have been 4 groups of temples (groups G, A, H and K) with 16 structures and surrounding walls at My Son that have been restored, mostly from restored bricks by Mr. Nguyen Qua's facility. The rest are original bricks collected from the excavation process.
Original bricks are reused to the maximum extent. Renovated bricks are built interspersed with original bricks. New bricks are mostly used in places that need to be connected, reinforced, and fixed. At temple G1, using bricks from Mr. Qua's kiln, after nearly 20 years, the quality of the bricks is still basically guaranteed.
Architect Mara Landoni, who has more than 20 years of experience in restoring brick relics in My Son, said: “At first, the quality of newly produced bricks was not up to standard and was not compatible with the original materials, but later, the quality of the bricks improved.
The new bricks used for renovation in Group G after 20 years are still in quite good condition, quite compatible, some small locations previously had salt like in tower G3 or tower G4 of Group G, but then disappeared due to the leaching process of rainwater.
Mr. Danve D. Sandu, Assistant Director, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said: “We took samples of new bricks to analyze and compare their physical and chemical properties with the original bricks at the site we are restoring.
The restored bricks of Mr. Nguyen Qua's ceramic art production facility are of guaranteed quality and quite stable. We will not only use these bricks for the restoration of My Son relics but also for the restoration of Wat Phou relics in Laos in 2023 because of the similarities in brick materials between the two relics."
Risk of shortage of restoration bricks
Since the end of May, Mr. Nguyen Qua's brick production facility has temporarily stopped production. Explaining the suspension, Mr. Le Van Hung - Chairman of the People's Committee of Duy Hoa Commune, Duy Xuyen District said: "Because Mr. Nguyen Qua's brick production facility is located in a residential area, the brick firing is still done manually, so it affects the environment. If he continues to fire bricks manually, Mr. Qua should submit a petition to the People's Committee of Duy Xuyen District for consideration."
Meanwhile, Mr. Nguyen Qua said that he is old now, finding a new location to build a kiln and set up a workshop will be difficult. “Working far from home will be very inconvenient, and the cost of manual work will increase. I can send bricks to other facilities to be fired. However, there are no facilities that fire bricks using the traditional manual method, most of them now fire tunnels. And I am not sure that tunnel firing will ensure the quality.”
According to information from the Indian Embassy in Vietnam, the Indian Government is expected to continue to pay attention to the restoration of a number of Champa relics in Central Vietnam, including the E and F groups of towers of the My Son Temple Complex.
“In addition, if the L project in My Son is implemented, new bricks will also be needed. Therefore, the quantity and quality of bricks for restoration in the coming time must be sufficient. However, with the current situation of Mr. Nguyen Qua's facility being unable to produce bricks, the risk of a lack of bricks for restoration is clear.
Lessons learned from the Group G restoration project 20 years ago, without bricks, the restoration work cannot be carried out, affecting the project's progress, or even having to stop the project" - Mr. Nguyen Cong Khiet, Director of the My Son Temple Management Board shared more.
The newly restored brick product is one of the research results from the tripartite cooperation project between UNESCO - Italy and Vietnam from 2003 to 2013. To achieve that result, in addition to the research of experts, the skills and experience of artisan Nguyen Qua are indispensable.
Nearly 20 years have passed, enough for brick making to become a local craft. And this craft, of course, is very necessary to maintain if we want to preserve the ancient Champa relics. Not only that, it has become a rare craft in Duy Xuyen land.
The fact that Mr. Nguyen Qua's brick factory is stopping production, while there is still no replacement factory, raises questions about the source of bricks for future restoration of ancient Champa relics.
Mr. Nguyen Qua is a ceramic artist with over 50 years of experience, trained in ceramic techniques and modeling in Guangdong, China. He has many ceramic art products supplying domestic and foreign markets such as Japan and the Netherlands.
“When the experts came to talk about making bricks for restoration, I thought a lot. They asked to make them similar to the ancient bricks in My Son, handmade. Although I have never made bricks for restoration, I think the basic steps are similar to making pottery. The important thing is “first material, second firing, third shape, fourth painting”.
Each brick is polished like a ceramic product. The most difficult step is firing because the bricks are large and thick. After the bricks are completely dry, they are fired, which takes up to two weeks. The main fuel is firewood. When firing, you need to know how to look at the kiln fire. If the fire is too hot or too cold, it cannot be restored," said Mr. Nguyen Qua.
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