A corner of Ly Son island (Photo: VNA)An ancient house of the Nguyen clan in Tayhamlet, An Vinh commune, Ly Son island district, is aged over 200 years.According to the elders, more than 200 years ago, many affluent families herebought timber from the mainland and hired ships to transport it to the islandto build three-compartment houses with roofs made of thatch or leaves.
The maincompartment has many wooden doors connected tightly with rafters and pillars.The house owner had invited carpenters from Kim Bong carpentry village in centralQuang Nam province and engraversfrom the central provinceof Thua Thien-Hue to LySon Island to build the house in five-six months.
Almost all ancient houses on Ly Son Island are worshipping houses of clans. Three-compartmenthouses are carved and decorated with a number of colourful horizontal lacqueredboards and parallel sentences. Every year, these worshipping houses hostceremonies to pay tribute to the ancestors who set sail into the East Sea to plantmarkers confirming the country’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos.
The Le Ly family in Dong hamlet, AnHai commune, is living in a 150-year-old ancient house, which is rested on 42pillars. In the past, the house’s roof was made of thatch, which has becomeless popular through years, so the house nowadays is roofed with earthen tiles.Mr. Ly said ancient houses always have moderate temperature (cool in summer andwarm in winter), they are also quiet.
A carved pattern depicts a horse transforming intoa dragon on the wooden door of Mr. Duong Phap’s ancient house in Tay hamlet.
According to Dr. Doan Khoi, Deputy Director of the Quang Ngai General Museum,the ancient house system on Ly Son Island was dated 150-200 years ago. Sincethey were not affected by wars and islanders are highly aware of preservation,these ancient houses have their architecture fully maintained.
The ancient house of Pham Thoai Tuyen, the fifth-generation descendant of Commanderof Hoang Sa Naval Detachment Pham Huu Nhat, in Dong hamlet, An Vinh commune,holds many precious documents confirming Vietnam’s sovereignty over theHoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos. “The most precious things in the ancienthouse are a great number of documents in Chinese-transcribed Vietnamese and itemsrelating to the Hoang Sa Flotilla. The ancient house system on Ly Son Island isa cultural heritage of special value, a vivid museum featuring Vietnam’sundeniable sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos”, affirmedDr. Khoi.
According to Khoi, it isnecessary to have a master plan recognising the value of the ancient houses forpreserving, studying and serving tourism. The Ministry of Culture, Sports andTourism is proposed to soon rate the complex of ancient houses in Ly Son islanddistrict as a national relic so that it can be served as a legal foundation toactivate long-term preservation.
Besidesthe system of ancient houses, ancient communal houses on Ly Son Island host ritualceremonies to commemorate the Hoang Sa soldiers who came from various clans andpay tribute to their contributions, creating an ancient and solemn space in thehometown of the Hoang Sa Flotilla.-VNA
VNA
