The guardian of the Thai ethnic cultural identity.

The journey of collecting Thai artifacts.

For many years, the stilt house of Mr. Vi Van Phuc (77 years old), located in Block 2, Con Cuong town (Con Cuong district, Nghe An province), has become a familiar destination for groups of visitors wanting to learn about the culture of the Thai ethnic group. Despite being very busy, elderly, and not as healthy as before, Mr. Phuc enthusiastically introduces each exhibit to his visitors. The stilt house next to National Highway 7 has long been considered a free museum for tourists visiting Con Cuong district.

"Sometimes I'm very tired and don't have much free time, but whenever tourists come, I still try my best to introduce them to the culture. Especially for the younger generations, every time I see them, I forget all my fatigue. I really want them to understand what Thai culture is like," Mr. Phuc said.

Mr. Phuc is a retired official and currently a respected figure in the community. He was born in Muong Qua (Mon Son commune) – a region renowned for its rich Thai culture. Mr. Phuc was born and raised in a house where four generations, nearly 30 people, lived together. In those days, men plowed the fields and fished, while women spun silk and wove cloth… Therefore, from a young age, the customs and lifestyle of the Thai people were deeply ingrained in his mind.

Mr. Phuc stands in a corner of the display area for agricultural tools and equipment. Photo: Tien Hung

Unlike many people in the highlands at that time, Mr. Phuc received a proper education. Even though the economy wasn't very prosperous back then, and transportation was very difficult, he had to travel to the town about 20km from his home to get to school. At the age of 18, Mr. Phuc left his hometown to study in Hanoi. "It was very hard. During the war, every time I went to Hanoi to study, I had to walk all the way to Thanh Hoa to catch a bus," Mr. Phuc recalled.

After graduating, Mr. Phuc was assigned to work in Vinh City. He recounted that during his school days and after graduating and starting work, even though he lived in the city, he could never forget the way of life of his people. The image of his mother spinning silk and weaving cloth, the lively sounds of the threshing floor, still echoed in his mind. Along with that came worries about the gradual erosion of his people's culture. Every time he returned to his hometown, he was saddened to see that many beautiful customs and traditions had disappeared. Many people didn't even know how to speak Thai. Items that were once integral to their lives were gradually being discarded. From then on, he decided to begin a journey of collecting and preserving artifacts and relics of the Thai people.

“I want future generations to know something about the lives of their ancestors. That’s why I started collecting in the early 1990s, when my family moved from Mon Son to Con Cuong town. First, I moved the traditional stilt house of the Thai people from my hometown, and then I started collecting items associated with the lives of my people,” Mr. Phuc said.

As an official who frequently travels for work, Mr. Phuc has a relatively easy time collecting things. Whenever he visits a rural area and sees something he likes, he asks to buy it. Many items are also gifts from locals after they learn about Mr. Phuc's good intentions.

Mr. Phuc currently owns 5 sets of gongs and drums. Photo: Tien Hung

A priceless museum

Upon arriving at Mr. Phuc's stilt house, one cannot help but be amazed by the number of artifacts as well as their beauty. The stilt house has a total area of ​​over 300 square meters.²The house is almost completely filled with artifacts from the ground floor to the second floor. Mr. Phuc said that, although an exact count has not been done, it is estimated that more than 1,000 artifacts are currently on display in this house.

The first thing that caught our eye upon entering the stilt house was the nearly 100-year-old loom and spinning wheel that his mother used to use. These were the tools closely associated with Mr. Phuc's childhood. Next to them was a rather rustic-looking rice pounding pit. Seeing our curiosity, Mr. Phuc used a pestle to stir the pit, producing quite interesting sounds. He enthusiastically explained that "pounding" (or "stirring the pit") is a form of folk performance of the Thai people, originating from their working lives and closely related to rice pounding. During the rice pounding process, to alleviate boredom and fatigue, people occasionally strike the sides of the pit or pound the pestles together, creating a pleasant sound that dispels worries and anxieties from the hard work in the fields. Over time, it gradually developed into songs and rhythms, eventually forming an art form performed during festivals, holidays, weddings, and other special occasions. Gradually, "khua luong" became a distinctive art form, the soul music of the Thai people.

Rice pounding field of the Thai people. Photo: Tien Hung

The artifacts in Mr. Phuc's unique stilt house mainly consist of tools for production, hunting, gathering, and daily life, as well as traditional musical instruments, religious objects, and funeral supplies. He displays them in various groups. There's a corner dedicated to spiritual culture; another to weaving and embroidery; a group for production tools; a group for hunting and fishing; a group for net weaving and basketry; a group for folk games; a group for animal husbandry; and a group for jewelry and clothing... Almost nothing of the Thai people is missing from this collection.

Stepping onto the second floor, the first thing that catches the eye are the long wooden benches that Mr. Phuc has arranged along the walkway. Upon closer observation, the benches are all meticulously carved, featuring crocodile motifs. The seat surfaces are also adorned with many lively carvings. Mr. Phuc explained that these are the same benches used in the homes of Thai officials, made over 100 years ago, which he acquired during a business trip to Quy Chau district.

Above those distinctive rows of chairs, Mr. Phuc hangs his sets of gongs and drums. Although no survey has been conducted, with 5 sets, he is probably the person who owns the most sets of gongs and drums in Nghe An today. Deeper inside the house, there is a dense collection of carefully arranged items. Some are hung on the walls, some are placed on shelves, and items that are easily damaged over time are displayed in glass cabinets. From a collection of musical instruments including bamboo flutes, bamboo pipes, gongs, drums used in funerals, weddings, festivals, and holidays, to a collection of tools for storing personal belongings including tubes, chests, jars, gourds, and containers (for men), and bags (for women). Then there is a collection of hunting and gathering tools including knives, traps, crossbows, and muskets…

A door from a Thai official's house that Mr. Phuc collected. Photo: Tien Hung

In addition, he has collected ancient Thai texts written hundreds of years ago. According to Mr. Phuc, his biggest worry is that many young Thai people no longer know how to speak or write the Thai language. "I'm very worried. That's why I always remind my children to try to speak Thai with each other when they come home, so that our children and grandchildren will know," Mr. Phuc said. To preserve their identity, in the family genealogy book that he wrote himself, Mr. Phuc has included a lot of information in the hope that future generations will learn about it. These are records of Thai customs, especially in funerals and weddings...

Mr. Phan Anh Tài, Head of the Culture and Information Department of Con Cuông District, said that Mr. Phúc's collection is an "invaluable museum" for the Thái people in particular. "Mr. Phúc's journey of collecting for over 30 years is truly precious. Mr. Phúc is the guardian of the cultural identity of the Thái people," Mr. Tài said.