About the Minh Mang Dynasty sword auctioned in France

Currently, gold objects of the Nguyen Dynasty are "hot items" for Vietnamese and international collectors. Therefore, Vietnamese collectors are always determined to buy them to bring antiques "back home". Typical examples are the Emperor's golden seal, the golden bowl of King Khai Dinh's dynasty, the Dai Trieu hat of high-ranking officials, the Nhat Binh dress of royal women, the Dai Trieu hat of princes... It must be said that domestic collectors have never had such a high sense of heritage protection and enthusiasm as in recent years. Especially with swords, one of the symbols of power of monarchical dynasties not only in Vietnam but also in all countries in the world; and in Vietnam, there are not many of this type left, so the auction of the sword of King Minh Mang's dynasty is "hotter" than ever.

The sword of King Minh Mang's dynasty has just been auctioned by Giquello auction house in France.

PHOTO: GIQUELLO

Information from the auction house said: The Vietnamese Minh Mang Dynasty sword brought up for auction this time is made of iron, gold, pearl, ivory, cloth, lacquered wood, 94.5 cm long; total weight 1,386 gr. The sword has a blade that may be European, with a wide upper part divided into two parts on the upper half of the blade; attached with gold leaf accessories and an ivory handle. The guard has the typical D-shape of 19th century Vietnamese swords, as well as the lion-shaped hilt. These elements are inspired by European models. The scabbard is made with red lacquer and attached with gold-colored metal accessories. The mouthpiece is engraved with Chinese characters, made in the form of dotted lines. Part of the inscription has been erased, but it mentions the gold content. Such inscriptions are typical of Nguyen Dynasty royal objects containing gold.

The auctioned sword has many similarities with King Gia Long's sword kept at the Military Museum (France).

PHOTO: VO QUANG YEN

So, the description of the auction house is quite detailed, here I would like to clarify a bit more so that readers can explore: The sword hilt is shaped like a dragon's head (not a lion's), made of ivory and covered with gold almost completely, leaving only two sides exposed. The dragon's head has a swirling mane, the gold-plated part on both sides of the sword hilt is carved with a continuous flower running from the dragon's head to the sword's hilt. The exposed ivory part on both sides is carved similarly, each side has an 8-petal flower with two leaves on both sides also running along the sword's hilt. The dragon's mouth holds one end of the sword handle, attached to the sword's hilt, on the sword's hilt are clearly carved chrysanthemums. The sword blade is made of iron, curved and has concave and raised ridges. The red lacquered wooden scabbard is covered with gold at three points: the mouth, the middle, and the end. The gold-plated part at the mouth of the scabbard is carved with a bat and a leaf, a form of a chrysanthemum transformed into a bat. In particular, there is a row of Chinese characters, although the first few characters are unclear, the following characters have the following content: Kim cong trong tu tael, bat tien, ngu phan (gold total weight 4 taels 8 chi 5 phan). The gold covering in the middle of the bag is carved with stylized cloud-shaped leaves (a stylized form of cloud-shaped chrysanthemum leaves). The gold covering at the end of the bag is stylized chrysanthemum flowers and leaves.

Through the image and description of this sword, compared with the swords of kings Gia Long, Thanh Thai, Khai Dinh and some swords in the Nguyen Dynasty's treasure, I noticed the following:

In terms of design: It shows a strong resemblance to King Gia Long's sword, with the curved blade and concave and raised ridges, and most importantly, it is rust-free and still bright in color. It seems that the blade was forged in the same workshop as King Gia Long's sword. Comparing it to the swords of King Thanh Thai and King Khai Dinh, it shows a difference in design because the swords of the two kings are straight.

Pair of Nguyen Dynasty Royal Swords at the National Museum of History, in an un-restored state

PHOTO: VU KIM LOC

Regarding decorative patterns: In general, the decorations on this sword and the three swords of the three kings mentioned above are the same, which are dragons and chrysanthemums.

With the above factors, I also agree with the auction house that this sword belongs to the Minh Mang dynasty. This is a sword belonging to the royal family, although the owner is unknown, like the pair of swords with gold-covered jade hilts belonging to the Nguyen dynasty treasure housed at the National History Museum.

It is known that the successful bidder for this sword is a Vietnamese collector whose name and address are being kept secret. Although the auction house did not disclose the price, it is hoped that the new "owner" of this sword will have the opportunity to return to the motherland along with the golden seals, golden bowls, hats and clothes... that were recently repatriated very wonderfully.