A house which was built over 200 years ago by a member of the Nguyen dynasty has been recognised by UNESCO as one of the 10 most beautiful traditional homes in Vietnam.
Skillfully sculptured beams and pillars
Pham Ngoc Tung, an elderly man, owns the home that is located in the central province of Thanh Hoa. He is of the seventh generation to inherit the house, built by one of his ancestors who held high rank under the mandarin system in place at the time.
The house was chosen because it embodies many aspects of Vietnamese design and architecture. It even includes rare traditional features. It also has lacquered panels containing complex parallel sentences.
The house is only nine metres wide and about 22 metres long. The roof is about five metres. But, as the owner said, "This house has a number of different influences in terms of architecture, including traditions from the north. The house was still in good repair when I was married."
Even though he has had several offers from people who wanted to buy the house, he has refused.
Between the years of 1959 and 1973 it was used as a storage facility for military equipment.
Experts from both Vietnam and Japan decided to invest USD40,000 for restorations. This agreement was made between the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
UNESCO recognised such house as one of ten most beautiful traditional houses in Vietnam in 2004.
“Since the restoration was completed we have welcomed a lot of visitors who seem to appreciate the craft work and design of the building," said Tung.
Some photos of the house:
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