Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam (third, right) examines the preservation of woodblocks from the Nguyen Dynasty at the National Archives Centre IV on December 20 (Photo: VNA) Lam Dong (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister Vu DucDam has described all archives kept at the National Archives Centre IV, basedin Da Lat city of the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, as pricelessassets of the nation.
He made the remark while examining thepreservation of woodblocks from the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945) – part of theMemory of the World Register – in Lam Dong on December 20.
Dang Thanh Tung, Director of the State Recordsand Archives Department of Vietnam under the Ministry of Home Affairs, said theNational Archives Centre IV, established in 2006, is tasked with managing thewoodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty and other archives of the central and CentralHighlands regions. It is currently preserving 34,619 woodblocks from the period.
The department has successfully applied moderntechniques in cleaning up the woodblocks. It has also devised solutions toimprove the preservation environment and archive restoration.
Pointing out difficulties in preserving thewoodblocks, Tung said they are being kept in rooms designed for preservingpaper, tape, and dish archives. Meanwhile, the volume of such items issubstantial, which feature reverse carvings written in Han Nom (oldChinese-like characters of Vietnam), so it will take much time and effort totranslate them.
Deputy PM Dam said that as these archives arepriceless assets, it is necessary to step up publicising them for all to see.
He asked archivists to promptly digitalise thewoodblocks and other archives. They should also pay attention to applyingtraditional preservation and restoration methods, aside from modern solutions,and invite experts and investors to the work.
The woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty helped torecord official literature and history, as well as classical and historicalbooks. They were included in the Memory of the World Register in 2009. –VNA
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