Hanoi (VNA) - An exhibition themed Vietnamese Sacred Animals isshowcasing over 200 images and objects in Hanoi to mark the Vietnam CulturalHeritage Day (November 23).

At many of the pagodas, temples or other instances of spiritual architecture inVietnam, statues of sacred animals almost always guard the gate. They are madefrom various materials such as stone, wood, terra cotta and bronze. They allexpress the skill of Vietnamese artisans and the quintessence of traditionalfine arts, said art researcher Tran Hau Yen The.  

The exhibition showcases various sacred animals like dragons, phoenixes,unicorns, lions, horses, elephants and various objects provided by the Hanoi Museumand private collectors.

Some sacred animals were created by Vietnamese artisans, while others wereformed through interactions with foreign cultures. Each sacred animal reflectsVietnamese traditional culture and characteristics.

The exhibition aims to preserve artistic and cultural values and help locals tobetter understand Vietnamese sacred animals, contributing to raising awareness ofpreserving, inheriting and promoting the national cultural identity.

“Ancient people believed that sacred animals were the embodiment of naturalphenomena, mysterious forces, or supernatural powers that could influence humanlife and the universe,” said The.


Last year, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism released a regulationthat bans foreign-style symbols, sculptures and worship objects unsuitable forVietnamese culture. In the past 20 years, together with open-door policy, manyforeign-style symbols, products and animal sculptures have been widely-spreadthroughout the country, distorting traditional spiritual images.

“Foreign animals were described with sharp nails, big claws and the fiercelook, meanwhile Vietnamese sacred animals look more tolerant,” said The.

The ministry has organised many competitions and training courses for artisansto encourage them to create sacred animal statues which bear traditional style,instead of imitating Chinese or European statues.

Painter Vu Huy Thieu said the exhibition provides visitors with a multi-facetedperspective on Vietnamese sacred animals. Besides the artefacts collected fromarchaeological sites and vestiges, the exhibition also displays sacred animalstatues produced recently by artisans Nguyen Giang and Tran Thanh Tung.

“The wooden statues by Giang and Tung are very beautiful and suitable to bedisplayed at Vietnamese vestiges and spiritual places because the artisans haveconsulted researchers and documents about traditional sacred animals,” said Thieu.

The exhibition runs until the end of this month at the Hanoi Museum, Pham HungStreet, Hanoi. To mark the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Day, folk artsperformances, and water puppetry shows will also be organised at the site.-VNA