Products from the Dai Bai bronze casting village in Gia Binh commune, Bac Ninh province, featured at the Glorious Spring Fair 2026 in Hanoi as enduring imprints of time, helping to further spread traditional cultural values, and honour the nation’s heritage.

Products from the Dai Bai bronze casting village in Gia Binh commune, Bac Ninh province.

Promoting 940-year-old bronze casting craft

Nguyen Thi Yen, a resident of Dai Bai bronze casting village, said her family has set up a booth at the Spring Fair to showcase hammered and cast bronze products to both domestic and international visitors.

The event offers her family and the village an opportunity to promote long-standing traditional products that embody the rich cultural and artistic values of the 940-year-old craft village.

According to Yen, Dai Bai is now home to around 1,000 craft households and some 30 large enterprises that export products to markets such as Japan, the Republic of Korea and several European countries.

In addition to cast items, villagers also produce hammered bronze products. In the past, the village mainly made simple household utensils from brass. Today, however, it has shifted toward high-value artistic and technical handicrafts to enhance economic returns, such as bronze censers, incense burners, lacquered boards, parallel sentences, feng shui bronze paintings, statues, vases, worship items and gongs.

Dai Bai’s products today are diverse and enjoy a stable market, enabling the village to generate jobs for thousands of local workers.

The craft is the culmination of diligence, skill and creativity. The products showcased at the fair reflect a persistent labour process in which traditional techniques such as hammering, engraving and inlaying are preserved alongside innovative approaches to design, patterns and functionality.

The harmonious blend of heritage elements and modern aesthetics helps Dai Bai bronzeware to retain its legacy character while fitting seamlessly into modern living spaces.

At the Spring Fair 2026, the exhibition space goes beyond a simple product display, evolving into a cultural rendezvous where visitors can more deeply appreciate the “soul” of the craft embodied in every meticulously carved detail.

Through its hammered and cast bronze works, Dai Bai projects the image of a heritage-rich craft village that honours tradition while adapting to modern times, reaffirming the lasting value of Vietnam’s handcrafted heritage.

Dai Bai bronzeware leaves lasting impression on visitors

Nguyen Trong Dong, a resident of Bac Lung commune, Bac Ninh province, said that seeing Dai Bai bronzeware at the fair left a strong impression on him, as each piece reflected cultural depth, meticulous craftsmanship and the enduring cultural identity of Bac Ninh’s craft villages, while also demonstrating the trade’s flexible adaptation to contemporary contexts.

Tran Duy Bich, from Long Bien ward in Hanoi, commented that Dai Bai bronze products showcased at fair have retained their traditional character, while many designs also reflect innovation.

He noted that this demonstrates the village’s ongoing transformation, as it preserves core values while expanding its reach to domestic and international buyers.

Nguyen Dinh Chien, from Tan Yen commune, who is a former metal caster at a local enterprise, said in Dai Bai, the trade generates economic benefits, jobs and stable incomes for many workers.

According to him, the village has maintained and developed distinctive casting techniques featuring intricate engravings that reflect national identity and creativity, enabling its products to compete with contemporary bronzeware.

He said that Dai Bai is not merely a production site but a “living heritage” embodying the cultural traits of Kinh Bac, attracting young workers and dedicated artisans committed to preserving and promoting the craft.

He added that Dai Bai bronzeware serves both the domestic market and exports to countries such as Japan, the Republic of Korea and EU members, affirming Vietnamese identity abroad.

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Visiting the traditional craft village of Thuan Thanh ward at the end of the lunar year, one is greeted by an abundance of diep paper, coloured paper, and shimmering metallic paper. The bright, vibrant hues are a joyful signal of the vitality of today’s folk painting and votive paper–making villages. 

Spaces for traditional craft villages expanded

Amid the currents of integration, craft villages in Viet Nam are increasingly taking the initiative to bring their products to wider markets, engaging in exchanges and cooperation with global craft traditions through exhibitions, trade fairs and festivals. This trend is opening up new development space for trade and tourism, while also posing fresh demands for preserving and enriching the values of Viet Nam’s traditional crafts.

 

Hanoi craft villages bustle as Lunar New Year approaches

Hanoi is home to the largest number of craft villages nationwide, with about 1,350 villages and craft-based communities, accounting for roughly 56% of rural villages in the capital. Of these, 318 are officially recognised as traditional craft villages.

 

Dai Bai bronze casting village gears up for Lunar New Year demand

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