{"id":3182,"date":"2026-06-17T00:08:59","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T15:08:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vietnam-gift.com\/news\/vietnam-woodblock-revival\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T08:12:45","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T23:12:45","slug":"vietnam-woodblock-revival","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/vietnam-gift.com\/en\/news\/vietnam-woodblock-revival\/","title":{"rendered":"A young artisan reviving about 600 years of woodblock printing, in the village of Thanh Lieu, Hai Duong"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u30d9\u30c8\u30ca\u30e0\u5317\u90e8\u30cf\u30a4\u30d5\u30a9\u30f3\u5e02\uff08\u65e7\u30cf\u30a4\u30ba\u30aa\u30f3\u7701\u30a8\u30ea\u30a2\uff09\u306e\u30bf\u30a4\u30f3\u30ea\u30a8\u30a6\uff08Thanh Lieu\uff09\u6751\u306b\u4f1d\u308f\u308b\u6728\u7248\u5370\u5237\u306f\u300115\u301c19\u4e16\u7d00\u306b\u304b\u3051\u3066\u6804\u3048\u305f\u53e4\u3044\u5de5\u82b8\u3060\u3002\u6f22\u5b57\u3084\u30ce\u30e0\u6587\u5b57\u3092\u5f6b\u308a\u8fbc\u3080\u9ad8\u5ea6\u306a\u6280\u8853\u3092\u8981\u3057\u3001\u3044\u307e\u306f\u6570\u6238\u304c\u7d30\u3005\u3068\u7d9a\u3051\u308b\u306e\u307f\u3068\u306a\u3063\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002\u3053\u306e\u8870\u9000\u3057\u305f\u7248\u6728\u306e\u6280\u3092\u3001\u6751\u51fa\u8eab\u306e\u82e5\u624b\u8077\u4eba\u30b0\u30a8\u30f3\u30fb\u30b3\u30f3\u30fb\u30c0\u30c3\u30c8\u3055\u3093\u3089\u304c\u5b66\u3073\u76f4\u3057\u3001\u30ef\u30fc\u30af\u30b7\u30e7\u30c3\u30d7\u3092\u901a\u3058\u3066\u8607\u3089\u305b\u3088\u3046\u3068\u3057\u3066\u3044\u308b\u3002<\/p>\n

Thanh Lieu\u2019s woodblocks, dating from the 15th century<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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\u2014Thanh Lieu, Lieu Trang, and Khe Lieu. His disciples Pham Nien and Pham Doi spread the craft, and with a division of labor\u2014men carving, women printing, and children trimming the paper\u2014the three villages became one of the country\u2019s foremost centers of woodblock printing.<\/p>\n

A craft that produced a UNESCO Memory of the World<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The woodblocks carved by Thanh Lieu\u2019s artisans carry weighty significance for later generations. In 2009, the Nguyen dynasty woodblocks became Vietnam\u2019s first inscription on UNESCO\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Item<\/th>\nDetails<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Location<\/td>\n\u30cf\u30a4\u30d5\u30a9\u30f3\u5e02\u30fb\u65e7\u30cf\u30a4\u30ba\u30aa\u30f3\u7701\u30a8\u30ea\u30a2 \u30bf\u30a4\u30f3\u30ea\u30a8\u30a6\u6751\uff08\u5317\u90e8\u30d9\u30c8\u30ca\u30e0\uff09<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
History<\/td>\nFlourished from the 15th to 19th century \/ founded by Luong Nhu Hoc (born 1420)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
UNESCO inscription<\/td>\nThe Nguyen dynasty woodblocks became Vietnam\u2019s first Memory of the World inscription in 2009<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Training period<\/td>\nAt least 3 years (mastery of Chinese characters and Nom script, and reading mirror-image text, is essential)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Carving time<\/td>\n3\u20135 days as standard; complex pieces take several months<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Current state<\/td>\nOnly a handful of households keep the craft alive<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Carving mirror-image characters: three years of training<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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\u20135 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.<\/p>\n

Young artisans relearning from the characters up<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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. \u201cI want the art of woodblock printing to keep flourishing and become familiar to many more people,\u201d Dat says.<\/p>\n

The \u201cJourney to Revive the Village\u201d project<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The revival effort is moving forward as a project titled \u201cThanh Lieu Woodblocks: A Journey to Revive a Craft Village.\u201d 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\u2014selecting the wood, preparing the block, carving, inking, and printing. Senior art students and foreigners have also shown interest.<\/p>\n

Summary<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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 \u201cshows and passes on\u201d the skill\u2014from a cultural asset to be admired into a craft handed down through hands-on experience. Thanh Lieu\u2019s effort points to one path for reviving craft villages.<\/p>\n

Related articles:
\n\u30fbThe revived Thanh Ha pottery village<\/a>
\n\u30fbA lantern maker\u2019s story<\/a>
\n\u30fbHoi An\u2019s Lantern Festival<\/a><\/p>\n

Source:Viet Nam News \/ Ancient woodblock printing saved from the chop<\/a> \/ Bao Hai Duong \/ Young artisan keeps memories on woodblocks<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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