Nghe An: Introducing UNESCO World Documentary Heritage

(Baonghean.vn) -On the morning of June 3rd, the Soviet-Nghe Tinh Museum, in collaboration with the Song Lam Ancient Artifacts Heritage Association, organized a talk and exchange on the topic of "Phuc Giang School Woodblocks" (18th-20th centuries). This is the third set of woodblocks in Vietnam to be recognized by UNESCO as a world documentary heritage.

The collection of woodblocks consists of documents carved on finely crafted persimmon wood, featuring beautiful calligraphy and family crests, as well as copyright marks. It contains a wealth of information about culture, education, socio-economics, and inter-family interactions, including rare and valuable ancient woodblocks, along with some of the Confucian classics ("Four Books and Five Classics"). These woodblocks are preserved at the Phuc Giang Library (Phuc Giang Library), a nationally renowned library belonging to the Nguyen Huy family.

The Phúc Giang School woodblock prints are currently preserved by the Nguyễn Huy family in Hà Tĩnh.

In Vietnam, this is a set of woodblock prints from a family lineage that remains intact to this day. The woodblocks share similarities with other sets of woodblocks, but also possess unique characteristics, particularly regarding education, which had a significant influence on Vietnam and its regional relations. From the 18th to the 20th centuries, these woodblocks served as valuable textbooks at Phuc Giang School, which trained over 30 PhDs and thousands of high-ranking and bachelor-level graduates. Among them were many natives of Nghe An province, such as Dr. Nguyen Trong Duong (Nam Dan) and Dr. Pham Nguyen Du (Thanh Chuong)...

Delegates gave their opinions at the discussion.

In May 2016, at the 7th Plenary Meeting of the Memory of the World Programme's Asia-Pacific Regional Committee (MOWCAP) held in Hue City, the Phuc Giang School woodblocks were inscribed by UNESCO as a Documentary Heritage under the Memory of the World Programme's Asia-Pacific Regional Committee.

The Phuc Giang School woodblock exhibition is on display at the Nghe Tinh Soviet Museum.

Currently, Vietnam has a total of 6 World Documentary Heritage sites, including: the Nguyen Dynasty woodblocks, the stone steles of the Le-Mac Dynasty doctoral examinations, the Vinh Nghiem Pagoda woodblocks, the Nguyen Dynasty imperial archives, the poetry and literature on Hue imperial architecture, and the Phuc Giang school woodblocks in Ha Tinh province.

My Ha