Alarm from historical relics

      Restoration of historical and cultural relics in Vietnam is now going at a fast clip. Individuals and organisations are voluntarily contributing money to re-paint ancient statues and repair temples and pagodas as a way to show their reverence to deities, but…
Begging for mercy for an ancient statue
We made a survey of some pagodas in Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh province, with Vietnam’s leading ancient art researcher, painter and a lecturer at the University of Arts, Phan Cam Thuong.
Thuong has been living in But Thap pagoda in Bac Ninh province for years. He is not a monk but he lives there because he loves that wonderful cultural heritage. As relics are being destroyed in the name of restoration, Phan Cam Thuong chose But Thap as a place to research and protect from modernization.
Talking about the movement of repairing relics, which contributes to destroying values of ancient arts, painter Phan Cam Thuong gave a list of examples: Dau Pagoda, Binh Pagoda, Tuong Pagoda, Phat Tich Pagoda in Bac Ninh province, Chuong Pagoda in Hung Yen, Tram Gian Pagoda and Sui Pagoda in Hanoi.
“Even in But Thap pagoda where I live, some wonderful ancient statues were re-painted with industrial paint,” the researcher said.
There are two Ho Phap statues (colossal statues guarding the main gates of pagodas) in But Thap pagoda but one was re-painted with industrial paint. When the job was finished, it was realised that the restoration had killed the valuable statue. The second statue, thus, was rescued from being “restored”.
$60 to “renew” an ancient temple
In the long period of Chinese domination, Luy Lau in Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh province was the economic, political and cultural centre of Vietnam. The first school of Vietnam was expanded there under the reign of Sy Nhiep (186-226). Sy Nhiep was elevated to the status of Nam Giao Hoc To (the ancestor of studies in Nam Giao). Sy Nhiep Temple is called the temple of former scholars. However, this ancient temple was completely renewed. All statues, parallel sentences and horizontal lacquer boards in the temple were re-painted carefully with industrial paint.
“We have just re-painted seven statues, including the statue of Mr. Sy Nhiep. It cost us more than VND1 million ($60)”, boasted Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh, 68, who takes care of the temple.
He said: “Our village has 152 families and it took us just half a month to call for them to contribute to re-paint the statues. After painting statues, we also painted parallel sentences, the eight weapons, and even the cross-arm to carry the palanquin. There are many objects that we have to re-paint to make them more beautiful…”
Asking him, “Is there any thing in the temple that has not been re-painted yet?”, he said: “There are some new objects that have not been re-painted yet. We hired Mr. Quynh, a painting worker from Man Xa (the nearby commune), to paint our temple.”
We asked Phan Cam Thuong whether these things were painted with Japanese paint. He glowered and said, “No, it is Vietnamese paint, which is often used to paint doors in rural areas.”
Ancient statues are gaudy red, bright and fluorescent yellow. Their faces are scrawled with beards and their white pale faces and crooked eyes look like characters in a tuong drama.
Phan Cam Thuong was numb with grief. He walked out to take photos of the ancient stone bridge on the road to the temple. He mumbled: “What can we do with them? They painted them already!”
This kind of poor-quality paint kills ancient statues, including the statue of Sy Nhiep, at the price of VND1 million. According to experts, statues can’t breathe because of this kind of paint and the statues will be destroyed in a period of time.
More painted statues
It is even worse at Tuong Pagoda, which was built in the second century. Cham, 47, who takes care of the pagoda boasted: “We raised funds from local people and Buddhists to paint our statues very carefully.”
Oh my God! Statues in the most ancient pagoda in Vietnam have turned from black to bright yellow, following the current mode at pagodas in Vietnam. Nobody would know that this was the ancient pagoda written about in a book by Phan Cam Thuong.
Cham and a Buddhist nun explained: “These statues were re-painted recently but the colours were faded. Whenever we have money, we will re-paint all of them again, in yellow.”
I and the Buddhist nun walked in a world painted by industrial paint, in bright reds and greens. At Tuong pagoda, the floor is covered in flowered enamel tiles. The yard is reinforced by concrete. All statues are decorated with colourful lights.
Besides the set of ten ancient statues which were painted by amateur workers, traders in Bac Ninh donated a new set of ten statues which look like children’s toys to the pagoda.
Phan Cam Thuong asked Cham: “The pagoda has ancient statues, why did you receive ten more new statues?”
Cham said: “Buddhists presented them so we had to take them.”
He added that some people donated a 3-m high Buddha statue, which is too big to bring into the pagoda. That statue is now in the yard of the pagoda, which looks like an entirely new pagoda with all its new accoutrement.