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[VIDEO] Returning to Quang Duc, I heard family stories about unique, lost blood cockle glazed ceramics
The family has a strong affinity for ceramics
For those who are passionate about collecting antiques, not only ceramics but also other product lines, the word charm must be mentioned. Growing up in Tuy An (Phu Yen) from a young age, I saw the elders in the village making pottery all year round, but later when he worked as a journalist and traveled to many places, Mr. Cuong (Editor of Vietnam Television in Phu Yen) became the main leader. A love affair with ceramics.
The mystery of Lak Lake’s sacred elephant stones: From crying elephants, swallowing people to the god of love “By chance, I did a seminar on ceramics and had the opportunity to travel to all craft villages along the South Central Coast. That’s when I learned about ceramics.” My hometown has special features that no other place has. It’s the same soil, the same firewood, but the artisans of Quang Duc village skillfully combine regional ingredients with the fire-burning method to create a type of ceramic with a unique blood cockle glaze. However, this technique was lost more than half a century ago. From then on, I determined to work with my family members to collect these ancient ceramic artifacts for many years,” Mr. Cuong recalled.
In the family, besides Mr. Cuong’s father, the eldest brother is the one who has the most passion for Quang Duc ceramics, followed by Mr. Cuong and his wife and the next generation is Quoc Bao (24 years old, – the eldest brother’s son), continue that passion. Currently, Quoc Bao is the manager of Quang Duc Xua space (an ancient house space that stores hundreds of Quang Duc ceramic antiques) along with a job of explaining to tourists about Quang Duc ceramics.
Quang Duc ceramic artifacts of the terracotta line with the firing technique of the Cham people
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Blood cockle glazed ceramic village on the banks of the Cai River
Quang Duc ceramics was born in Quang Duc village, Tuy An district, Phu Yen province around the late 16th – early 17th century, by a Nguyen family bringing Go Sanh pottery from Binh Dinh.
Related news: 300 guests fly private jet to Phu Quoc to attend Indian tycoon’s wedding. Due to inheriting the advantages of Cham ceramic making techniques, Quang Duc ceramics have very high durability, especially the product line. terracotta. Plant pots and ornamental fish pots, even when left outside in rainy or sunny weather, will never develop algae. This is thanks to the continuously absorbent ceramic surface, which prevents rainwater from stagnating on the walls of the vase.
The most unique thing about Quang Duc ceramics that many people mention is the blood cockle glazed ceramic line. Using clay from An Dinh commune as raw material, artisans filled the ceramic bags with fresh blood cockles from O Loan lagoon and fired them for 3 days and 3 nights with mango firewood taken from Ky Lo commune (Dong Xuan district, Phu Yen province).
Fresh blood cockles exposed to high temperatures in the oven will heat up, creating a fire phenomenon that affects the fresh glaze layer, causing the glaze color to change. In a kiln, the products placed at the top, middle or bottom of the kiln all have different colors, no two products are the same, and on the surface of the ceramic bones there are still traces of melted shells. This is what makes each Quang Duc ceramic product unique.
Set of three Quang Duc ceramic products in pure pink color at Quang Duc Xua
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Unique vase with seashell pattern
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A unique vase with seashell pattern
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“In Quang Duc Xua, there are still three ceramic products in pink color – the most valuable color in the glazed ceramic product line. The reason pink is so precious is because it is very difficult to create this color, the product must be placed in a fire, where the temperature is highest to create this color,” said Mr. Quoc Bao (nephew of Mr. Cuong, manager of the tourist area). Ancient Quang Duc calendar) explained.
Related news In addition to Dong Dang peach blossom, Mang Den also glows with crimson color. In prosperous times, the whole Quang Duc village makes pottery, red all year round. Quang Duc ceramic products are present everywhere in the country, from simple products associated with rustic life such as fish storage jars, jars, and tea pots to products representing high-end hobbies such as dogs, wine jars, and vases. Lime for chewing betel, water for writing calligraphy… were exported to the Central Highlands and Southern provinces and followed the French to the ocean.
One of the vases at Quang Duc Xua engraved in 1934, in Quang Duc village, is a trace of the French using these ceramic products. This was also one of the last times that Quang Duc ceramic making techniques still existed.
“Currently, in Quang Duc Xua, there are still evidences of the first pottery kilns, which are considered evidence that I and other ancient ceramic researchers have a database to study. In the near future, we have plans to restore some of the manufacturing process, but for now it is still very difficult because it involves techniques, know-how, and most importantly, materials. It’s difficult now to find tons of fresh blood cockles like that to pour into the ceramic kiln…”, said manager Quang Duc Xua.
Colorful glazed Quang Duc ceramic products
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Display cabinet of blood cockle yeast wine products
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Quang Duc ceramic lime pots glazed with blood cockles
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Thuy Tri wrote the calligraphy of the ancients
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The only person who wants to keep his job for the rest of his life
According to Mr. Cuong, we stopped at the beginning of Quang Duc village to find the old pottery village. The name “Pottery Kiln” still remains on the bridge over the Cai River, but in the entire village, only Mr. Nguyen Van Ngan (50 years old) still holds the hereditary pottery profession. However, the current ceramic products are only a few types of decorative terracotta pots, and the technique of making oyster-glazed ceramics has long been lost.
related news Western man makes ‘unique’ job of building mini boats for millions per boat. Mr. Ngan sighed: “Twenty years ago, the whole Quang Duc village had 9 or 10 makers, but now it’s just me. Now just continue to keep this hereditary profession and do it for the rest of your life. I once tried a batch with blood cockles but it failed, it only created scorch marks on the wall of the vase but could not be made.
The quality of clay is no longer the same as before, it is impossible to find tons of fresh cockles to put in the kiln, and firewood to create high temperatures in the kiln is even more difficult. Mang Lang firewood from the vast Mang Lang forest in this area in the past, now only remains in the name of Mang Lang church. It is the only trace of a mangrove forest that once existed.
Because of its loss, Quang Duc ceramics have become even more precious and only appear in the world of antique collectors. However, in the world of antiques lovers, displaying hundreds of precious artifacts so that everyone can come see them with their own eyes and touch them with their hands like Mr. Cuong’s family is even more rare.
Mr. Quoc Bao tells stories about Quang Duc pottery to tourists
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Excavated ruins at the first pottery kiln
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Mr. Cuong enthusiastically said: “Because the unique craft village has been lost, I want to preserve and share those values with many people, maybe because the fate of collecting comes after journalism. If we preserve and promote the quintessential values of our grandparents in the past to introduce them to future generations, they will love and accompany us even more.”
Not only ceramics, in the 2,000m2 space, his family also collected a 3-room wooden house and brought it from Hue to repair for 3 months. Besides, there are many items from the daily life of ancient people collected here such as silk looms of Ngan Son silk village, fishing gear, jewelry, cake molds, flour mills… All creating a craft village architectural space imbued with the character of an ancient village.
Quang Duc Xua space combines an old house and garden
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A corner table in the garden for visitors
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Homeowner’s decorative corners
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The 200-year-old ancient house of Quang Duc Xua was collected from Hue
