ベトナム北部ハイフォン市（旧ハイズオン省エリア）のタインリエウ（Thanh Lieu）村に伝わる木版印刷は、15〜19世紀にかけて栄えた古い工芸だ。漢字やノム文字を彫り込む高度な技術を要し、いまは数戸が細々と続けるのみとなっている。この衰退した版木の技を、村出身の若手職人グエン・コン・ダットさんらが学び直し、ワークショップを通じて蘇らせようとしている。
Thanh Lieu’s woodblocks, dating from the 15th century
The person who brought woodblock printing to this area was Luong Nhu Hoc, born in 1420. He learned the technique during two diplomatic missions to China, and after returning home he passed it on to residents of three villages—Thanh Lieu, Lieu Trang, and Khe Lieu. His disciples Pham Nien and Pham Doi spread the craft, and with a division of labor—men carving, women printing, and children trimming the paper—the three villages became one of the country’s foremost centers of woodblock printing.
A craft that produced a UNESCO Memory of the World
The woodblocks carved by Thanh Lieu’s artisans carry weighty significance for later generations. In 2009, the Nguyen dynasty woodblocks became Vietnam’s first inscription on UNESCO’s Memory of the World register. Thousands of sets of scriptures, books, and seals have been preserved over hundreds of years. The table below summarizes the key points of the village and its craft.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Location | ハイフォン市・旧ハイズオン省エリア タインリエウ村（北部ベトナム） |
| History | Flourished from the 15th to 19th century / founded by Luong Nhu Hoc (born 1420) |
| UNESCO inscription | The Nguyen dynasty woodblocks became Vietnam’s first Memory of the World inscription in 2009 |
| Training period | At least 3 years (mastery of Chinese characters and Nom script, and reading mirror-image text, is essential) |
| Carving time | 3–5 days as standard; complex pieces take several months |
| Current state | Only a handful of households keep the craft alive |
Carving mirror-image characters: three years of training
Woodblock carving has a distinctive difficulty. You must be versed in both Chinese characters and Vietnamese Nom script, understand the rules of calligraphy, and read and carve mirror-image text where left and right are reversed. It takes at least three years to become proficient. A standard woodblock takes 3–5 days to carve; complex pieces take several months. Poonah paper is used for printing. Even at the end of the Nguyen dynasty, only about 20 of several hundred carvers were skilled enough to carve scriptures.
Young artisans relearning from the characters up
Nguyen Cong Dat, from the village, is the central figure working to revive this craft. He sought out historians to learn the history of his ancestors, and relearned Chinese characters and Nom script in order to read and carve the woodblocks. “I want the art of woodblock printing to keep flourishing and become familiar to many more people,” Dat says.
The “Journey to Revive the Village” project
The revival effort is moving forward as a project titled “Thanh Lieu Woodblocks: A Journey to Revive a Craft Village.” Local artisans partner with a research, development, and application center for Vietnamese craft-village products to hold carving and printing workshops. Participants can experience the whole process—selecting the wood, preparing the block, carving, inking, and printing. Senior art students and foreigners have also shown interest.
Summary
Thanh Lieu woodblock printing is a craft that, despite a history that produced a UNESCO Memory of the World inscription, has dwindled to just a few practitioners. By having young artisans relearn from the characters up and opening the craft to outsiders through workshops, they are reshaping it into a form that “shows and passes on” the skill—from a cultural asset to be admired into a craft handed down through hands-on experience. Thanh Lieu’s effort points to one path for reviving craft villages.
Related articles:
・The revived Thanh Ha pottery village
・A lantern maker’s story
・Hoi An’s Lantern Festival
Source:Viet Nam News / Ancient woodblock printing saved from the chop / Bao Hai Duong / Young artisan keeps memories on woodblocks
