A love for Muong culture

      Muong Cultural Space Museum in the northern province of Hoa Binh’s Cao Phong District was inspired by a Kinh artist named Vu Duc Hieu who has a profound compassion for Muong customs and culture, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
Born in 1977 in Hanoi, Hieu grew up in the land of Muong people in Hoa Binh Province. After graduating from Hanoi University of Fine Arts and Hanoi University of Industrial Fine Art in 2000 and 2001, he began working for Van Hoa Cong Nhan (Worker’s Culture) magazine and joined the Hoa Binh Province Literature and Arts Association.
Hieu fell in love with Muong ethnicity when he was studying fine arts at university. He visited tribes of Muong people including Muong Bi, Vang, Thang and Dong, collecting objects representing the daily life of Muong people.
As his collection grew he began to appreciate the depth and complexity of the Muong culture and was motivated to learn more. “Traditional ethnic cultural features are gradually becoming blurred and have lost their luster in the strong development of modern life, so I want to do something to preserve them,” said Hieu.
His determination was rewarded with a large collection of more than 3,000 objects, among them some highly valued such as gongs, ancient censers and vases featuring Muong sculpture and art.
Hieu recognized that the antiques and objects should be displayed in a public place so that locals and tourists, and in particular the young generation of Muong people, could have a better understanding of Muong culture.
He decided to turn his collection into a cultural museum which he established on two-hectares of land on a mountain slope, 6 kilometers from Hoa Binh city center.
The museum is dedicated to displaying Muong artifacts, tools and ornaments including fishing, weaving and shooting tools, household utensils and mourning rooms and clothes.
The museum also features 200 of more than 600 southern medicinal plants of Muong people which are grown on an area of 500 square meters. Traditional medicinal plants can treat diseases involving bone, liver, flu, cough and colds, as well as digestion.
Muong Cultural Space Museum is regarded a miniature Muong society, with four types of houses illustrating class distinction within the society: the Lang house for the upper class, Au house for servants in Lang House, Nooc House for middle class and Nooc troi house of the lower class.
The museum attracts a large number of visitors every year, including foreign tourists from France, the U.K., South Korea and Japan.
For more information, visit www.muong.vn or call 0218 893 688.