YEN THAI DÓ PAPER-MAKING VILLAGE
Yen Thai dó paper craft village (also known as Kẻ Bưởi- now located in Tây Hồ district, Hà Nội) is famous for being the land of "talented human genius". Besides their talent for Lĩnh weaving, local people were renowned for making Dó paper. In "Dư địa chí" (written in 1435), Nguyễn Trãi mentioned that Yên Thái Ward in Thăng Long includes many villages: Hồ Khẩu, Đông Xã, An Thọ, Yên Thái, Nghĩa Đô, making many kinds of paper: Sắc (for writing royal decrees), Lệnh (for writing only the king's orders), Bản (for civil service). Yên Thái Do's paper is renowned for the sound created with the beat of pounding drumsticks. That sound has entered into folk songs, making the beauty of a peaceful capital:
Women folding paper in the factory, 1885 - 1921
© Postcard, Quai Branly Museum
Village Well, 1885 - 1921
©Postcard, Quai Branly Museum
Dó bark kilns
©Institute of Social Sciences Information
Prepare fibers: use a small knife to scrape, peel and divide into 3 types of fibers; beautiful white fibers used to make first-class paper
©Institute of Social Sciences Information
Crushing the bark into a powder, done by men, usually starting at 4am
© French School of the Far East
Washing pulp on Tô Lịch river
© French School of the Far East
Xeo giấy (paper folding) is an important step, deciding the quality of paper. The work requires ingenuity and maturity, often performed by women.
©Institute of Social Sciences Information
Pressing paper: the tip to press is usually placed on the stump of a big tree; big stones are gradually added to the end of the rod so that the weight and pressure do not increase suddenly and break the paper.
© Quai Branly Museum
Paper drying: the wet paper is peeled off and pasted on the wall of the oven to dry
© Institute of Social Sciences Information
