Ceremony honours revolutionary historian

A ceremony commemorating the 125th anniversary of the death of historian Pham Than Duat (1825-85) was held at Ha Noi's Literature Temple on Monday, honouring his great contributions to Vietnamese people's revolution against the French colonialists.
Duat, who was born in the northern province of Ninh Binh, died on November 29, 1885, after the French had sent him into exile on the island of Tahiti.
Duat's life was that of a patriotic intellectual. Born into a poor family, he succeeded in royal exams and worked for King Tu Duc as a royal mandarin. He was put in charge of the Temple of Literature and also served as a tutor to princes. He also contributed substantially to an 1884 book of national history that remains a valuable reference source for current historians.
He became embroiled in the revolution, when he was assigned to resist a French invasion by senior mandarin Ton That Thuyet (1839-1913). Duat and his family were captured by the French in July 1885.
* Ha Noi to host National Fine Arts Exhibition 2010
The National Fine Arts Exhibition 2010 representing Viet Nam's fine arts industry will open in Ha Noi today, Dec 1.
On display will be representative works from the 2006-10 period to gauge fine arts development during the process of national industrialisation and modernisation towards global integration.
More than 863 works of art by 735 artists including paintings, graphics, installations and sculptures will be displayed to reflect contemporary life and society from different angles.
The exhibition will run until December 15 at the Viet Nam Exhibition Centre for Culture and Arts, Hoa Lu Street, Ha Noi.