Dong Trieu's fine-art pottery attracts tourists

Dong Trieu’s fine-art pottery products are attractive souvenirs to tourists thanks to such great features as smallness, lightness, aesthetics, endurance, and portability.

An artisan at Quang Vinh Limited Company, Quang Ninh branch

Dong Trieu’s pottery dates back long time ago and its golden age were the 80s of 20th century. On those days, Anh Hong and Dong Thanh Cooperatives produced pottery and porcelain products for export to former Soviet and Eastern Europe. In the face of severe competitiveness, fine-art pottery producers still survive thanks to the combination between modern technologies and potters’ skillful hands to create high-end and high yield products. 

According to Excellent Artisan Le Trong My, former chairman of Dong Thanh Pottery Cooperative (in Duc Chinh Ward), Dong Trieu’s pottery and porcelain is unique because they are sintered at temperature as high as 1280 degree Celsius. Finish products are durable and impact-resistant. This is because Quang Ninh has a aluminum-rich clay source and a lot of raw materials to produce the right types of enamel.

Tourists choose Dong Thanh's pottery products

Mr. My also noted that in order to make durable pottery products, the enamel must be as high temperature–resistant as the clay. Otherwise, the products will be cracked and blistered. The enamel is a mixture of first-class aluminum-rich kaolin, rock powder, and iron dioxide material. Earlier, artisans used to collect mud at the mouth of rivers, let them dry, then make enamel.

Nowadays, materials for making enamel are available in the market but there are secrets in mixing enamel color kept by artisans in Dong Trieu.  Dong Trieu pottery and porcelain are famous for bright and beautiful enamel. Favourite colors are emerald crystal, light brown, light yellow…

After spraying enamel and put nearly final touches on the products, artisans paint patterns, namely mountains, landscapes, people…It takes an artisan 6 months of training and many years of experiences to paint patterns on the products. And it may take him hours to pain decorative patterns, depending on the size of the products.

Tourists visit Dong Thanh Pottery Village

For export, producers, namely Quang Vinh Limited Company Quang Ninh Branch, Quang and Arts Joint-stock Company, Dong Thanh Ceramics Limited Company, Thai Son Ceramic… have invested dozens of billion of VND in improving designs, diversifying product lines; and combined handicraft and modernization, and fine arts and lacquer art. Therefore, many products have creative designs in terms of shapes, colors, and styles.

Despite ups and downs, Dong Trieu’s pottery and porcelain has affirmed its foothold in domestic market and even been exported to countries global-wide, namely the UK, France, South Korea….

Translated by Quynh Trang