Local economy

Thiet Ung Wood Sculptures

Thiet Ung Village, Van Ha Commune (Dong Anh District, Hanoi) has long been famous in both domestic and foreign markets for its durable and delicate wood sculptures.
According to Dao Cong Luan, Head  of Thiet Ung Village, in the past, the locals lived on mainly farming and wood sculpture was just auxiliary work. Recently, however, they have invested intensively in making wood handicrafts due to the huge demand from customers. With their skillfulness, artisans in Thiet Ung Village have produced diverse products that meet customers’ demands.


Wood sculpturing is a traditional craft in Thiet Ung Village.

Most households in Thiet Ung Village are involved in wood sculpturing.

Thiet Ung artisans turn raw wood into artistic items.


Finishing a wood sculpture.


An artisan is finalising her products.


The craft provides the  labourers in Thiet Ung Village and neighboring areas with a lot of job opportunities.
 
According to the statistics of Van Ha Commune’s People’s Committee, up to 95% of the households in Thiet Ung Village are involved in wood craft production with about 500-600 local workers. On average, each household makes an income of about 200-300 million dong a year.
Wood craft production includes many procedures. The first phase is processing the wood. Wood chosen to make fine art articles is durable, firm and resistant to breaking and termites and has a fine finish. The wood is then cut into pieces of several sizes depending on the size of the desirable products. Finally, these wooden pieces are chiseled and carved with a CNC wood carving machine to form crafts with differing patterns and shapes.
Artisan Dao Thi Hong Tham, who has more than 20 year experience in this craft, acknowledged that the uniqueness of Thiet Ung products is each wood sculpture has its own countenance. All details present the consistency, harmony and liveliness of the craft as a whole.
Popular products of Thiet Ung Village are statues of Phuc-Loc-Tho (Deities of Blessing, Prosperity and Longevity), pictures of the Four Noble Ones and statues of animals like pigs and dragons. These products are sold in most provinces nationwide and exported to some countries like China, Japan and RoK.

Some wood crafts produced in Thiet Ung Village 

Story: Ngan Ha – Photos: Viet Cuong


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