Hanoi artisan spends nearly half a century preserving craft of making moon cake moulds

Located about 20km south of downtown Hanoi, Thuong Cung village, Tien Phong commune, Thuong Tin district is famous for its craft of making moon cake moulds. However, here only one artisan is keeping the craft. That is Tran Van Ban. Ban, who has nearly 40-year experience in the trade, is the last moon cake mould maker in the village. His family provides moulds for making moon cakes in various sizes and patterns. In addition to traditional patterns such as apricot, bamboo, chrysanthemum, lotus, carp, dragon, and phoenix, the 56-year-old carpenter also creates moulds in the shapes of pig and piglet, the 12 zodiac signs, and Hanoi's iconic One-Pillar Pagoda, as well as made-to-order moulds requested by companies. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Over the past 40 years, Ban has still firmly carved and preserved the craft of making moon cake moulds. He said that nearly 20 years ago, many families in Thuong Cung made moon cake moulds. But due to its seasonal nature, most of them quit for other jobs, making him the only one still pursuing this craft. With more than half of his life dedicated to making moon cake moulds, he has contributed to bringing joy to many people, especially children, on special occasions of the year. He has been active in sharing experiences and teaching the craft to his descendants with the hope of preserving and further promoting the ancestral trade. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

The motifs of the moulds are sketched out before being chiselled by this skilled craftsman. With 40 years of living and breathing in the profession, Ban has made countless moulds and has mastered the art of making moon cake moulds. The process of making one moon cake mould is exhaustive and meticulous. The wood used for mould-making needs to be tough yet resilient enough to withstand pressure. The whole block will be trimmed and redesigned to customers' requirements. The intricate patterns on the mould require careful and mindful preparation as they can ruin the cake. Under his talented craftsmanship, the artisan has created hundreds of moulds varied in size and shape, from the traditional moulds resembling the lotus, rose, and calendula to those featuring shrimp, fish and crab. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Making a finished cake mould from a log goes through many stages, from selecting and processing the wood to creating a frame and carving designs for the mould. The most time-consuming and meticulous work is carving the design into the mould, as this step must be entirely done by hand. The patterns must be sharp and look lively to bring a beautiful appearance to the cake. A good mould will not let the dough stick to it. Regarding made-to-order moulds, it requires skills and experience and careful calculation of every detail. Ban has a collection of hundreds of chisels of various sizes and types to perfect the design of patterns for his cake moulds. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

The most time-consuming and complicated stage is carving the design into the mould, as this step must be entirely done by hand. This requires the artisan to be meticulous, creative and careful in each line. The time needed to make a moon cake mould depends on the size and sophistication of the patterns. Some moulds make cakes weighing 200 grams, and others are designed for cakes weighing up to one kilogram. With a regular cake mould, it often takes Ban about two or three hours to complete, but it may take up to one month to finish a big and classy one. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Sometimes, the 56-year-old artisan spends 20 hours a day on the work. Even some days, he works until 2 am, takes a short nap until 5 am, and wakes up to continue the work. With more than half of his life dedicated to making moon cake moulds, Ban has contributed to bringing joy to many people, especially children, on the special occasion of the year. As the only one in the village pursuing this craft, he has been active in sharing experiences and teaching the traditional craft to his descendants with the hope of preserving and further promoting the ancestral trade. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

The time needed to make a moon cake mould depends on the patterns' size and sophistication. Some moulds make cakes weighing 200g, and others are designed for cakes weighing up to a kilo. With a regular cake mould, it often takes Ban about two or three hours to complete, but it may take him up to one month to finish a made-to-order mould. The busiest time for the skilled moon cake mould maker is from the fifth to the eighth lunar months. Customers from across the country, even foreign tourists, flock to the village to place orders. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, Ban's family sells hundreds of moon cake moulds. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Ban is making a mould. Moon cakes are indispensable to every offering tray during the Mid-Autumn Festival. They are classified into banh nuong (baked moon cake) and banh deo (sticky rice moon cake). To create a distinctive look for each cake, the mould plays an important role. The process of making one moon cake mould is exhaustive and meticulous. The wood used for mould-making needs to be tough yet resilient enough to withstand pressure. The whole block will be trimmed and redesigned to customers' requirements. The intricate patterns on the mould require careful and mindful preparation as they can ruin the cake. Ban, who has 40 years of experience in chiselling moon cake moulds, said that some customers made designs themselves and then sent their images to him by phone to make the moulds. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

The artisan is carving the design into the mould. This stage is tough and meticulous. It takes him even a day to do this. This step must be done entirely by hand. The patterns must be sharp and look lively to bring a beautiful appearance to the cake. A good mould will not let the dough stick to it. The intricate patterns on the mould require careful and mindful preparation as they can ruin the cake. The wood used to make moulds needs to be challenging yet resilient enough to withstand pressure. There are many types of wood used for making moon cake moulds, but Ban prefers 'xa cu', or faux acajen, a kind of softwood which is durable and pliable. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Hundreds of moon cake moulds with different patterns are displayed in the working area of Ban, who is the only artisan in the village to pursue the traditional craft. He shared that traditional moon cake moulds have faced fierce competition from Chinese plastic products in recent years. However, wooden cake moulds are still favoured by classic moon cake lovers as wooden moulds are more durable and ensure higher food safety, and convey the quintessence of the traditional craft and the dedication of skilled workers. Despite old age, Ban is still active in sharing experiences and teaching the craft to his descendants with the hope of preserving and further promoting the ancestral trade. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Ban contemplates a moon cake mould. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, Ban makes about 200-300 moon cake moulds, with prices ranging from 300,000 VND to 700,000 VND. There are special ones sold for up to tens of millions of VND. The busiest time for skilled moon cake mould makers is from the fifth to the eighth lunar months. Customers from across the country, even foreign tourists, flock to the village to place orders. Each season, Ban's family sells hundreds of moon cake moulds. Moon cakes are indispensable to every offering tray during the Mid-Autumn Festival. They are classified into banh nuong (baked moon cake) and banh deo (sticky rice moon cake). (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Ban introduces a moon cake mould featuring Hanoi's iconic One-Pillar Pagoda. This is one of many intricate patterns he spent countless hours chiselling to make. His family provides moulds for making moon cakes in various sizes and patterns. In addition to traditional designs such as apricot, bamboo, chrysanthemum, lotus, carp, dragon, and phoenix, the 56-year-old carpenter also creates moulds in the shapes of pig and piglet, the 12 zodiac signs, and Hanoi's iconic One-Pillar Pagoda, as well as made-to-order moulds requested by companies. Under his talented craftsmanship, the artisan has created hundreds of moulds varied in size and shape, from the traditional moulds resembling the lotus, rose, and calendula to shrimp, fish and crab-shaped ones. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

The moulds feature Vietnamese animal signs. Ban, who has nearly 40-year experience in the trade, is the last moon cake mould maker in the village. His family provides moulds for making moon cakes in various sizes and patterns. In addition to traditional designs such as apricot, bamboo, chrysanthemum, lotus, carp, dragon, and phoenix, the 56-year-old carpenter also creates moulds in the shapes of pig and piglet, the 12 zodiac signs, and Hanoi's iconic One-Pillar Pagoda, as well as made-to-order moulds requested by companies. He has a collection of hundreds of chisels of various sizes and types to perfect the design of patterns for his cake moulds. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Ban works hard to create moon cake moulds. His children and grandchildren help him with many stages when there are many orders. Only in the manual carving stage does he it himself to stabilise the quality of the products, thus keeping the trust of customers. With more than half of his life dedicated to making moon cake moulds, the 56-year-old artisan has brought joy to many people, especially children, on the special occasion of the year. He has been active in sharing experiences and teaching the traditional craft to his descendants with the hope of preserving and further promoting the ancestral trade. (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Despite his old age and worse health, Ban is still busy chiselling daily with a deep love for his craft. The artisan believes that the moon cake mould making craft will always gain a foothold in society as moon cakes are an indispensable part of every offering tray during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Traditional moon cake moulds have faced fierce competition from Chinese plastic products in recent years. However, wooden cake moulds are still favoured by traditional moon cake lovers as wooden moulds are not only more durable and ensure higher food safety and convey the quintessence of the traditional craft and the dedication of skilled workers. (Photo: Vietnamplus