Tàng Thơ Lâu, a document storage centre that dates back to Nguyễn Dynasty (1802–1945) has been restored and opened to public. Photo vov.vn

THỪA THIÊN-HUẾ — A document storage centre that was established during the Nguyễn Dynasty (1802–1945) was recently re-opened by Huế Monuments Conservation Centre.

The centre, Tàng Thơ Lâu, was built in 1825 under Emperor Minh Mạng (1820-1841) by 1,000 soldiers.

Its overall architecture was designed to store and preserve important books, documents and papers of the court. The building is located on a rectangular island in the middle of Học Hải Lake, which is connected to the mainland by a bridge built of bricks and stones on the west bank.

Tàng Thơ Lâu is a massive two-storey building consisting of many small spaces connected to each other and with many windows. It was built of bricks and stone, in addition to plastering and terracotta roofing.

According to the Huế Monuments Conservation Centre, the centre had become seriously damaged and degraded over time and had lost its original function to be used for other purposes. Meanwhile, the documents that were stored there had been moved to other places both within Việt Nam and even abroad.

After Tàng Thơ Lâu was handed over to the Huế Monuments Conservation Centre, restoration work started in 2014. Today, the building preserves texts, video and images on various topics.

Visitors view a document of the Nguyễn Dynasty being exhibited at Tàng Thơ Lâu Centre. Photo VNA/VNS Photo Đỗ Trưởng

According to the director of Huế Monuments Conservation Centre Võ Lê Nhật, Tàng Thơ Lâu is aimed at not only storing documents and researching the cultural heritage of the ancient capital but also connecting the values of the past with contemporary life

It is also expected to become a unique cultural and tourist destination, attracting both researchers and tourists to visit Huế City. VNS