People who "keep history by hand"

VHO - Many experts in archaeology and history recognize that behind museum artifacts there always exists a team of restorers and protectors, silently working to preserve the original state of the artifacts.

In the context of an increasingly technological society, how should the work of museum conservators be viewed, so that they can truly feel secure in their responsibilities and expertise?

Mr. Huynh Dinh Quoc Thien, Director of Da Nang Museum, humorously defines his colleagues in the field of expertise as those who are “holding history by hand”. They need the attention of management levels and the entire social community, so that they can receive better investment, ensure positive requirements and criteria, and help their work become more and more effective.

Turn the page of earth, light up the page of life

After storm No. 3 hit the northern provinces, Mr. Huynh Dinh Quoc Thien commented: "We museum workers are all very worried, when storms and natural disasters strike, threatening buildings, museums, relics and sites... will localities be able to prevent all risks to museums after storms and soon we, museums in the Central region, will face a new storm season."

People who — Mr. Huynh Dinh Quoc Thien, Director of Da Nang Museum

Mr. Thien's thoughts, as well as those of many experts and consultants specializing in historical conservation and research, seem to always be the same in terms of how to ensure the safest system of relics and artifacts in museums and historical sites. One of the issues that needs attention is how are people who specialize in museum conservation cared for and protected?

Turning to this aspect, Mr. Thien confided that it seems that every year, every rainy and stormy season, the museum conservation industry has stories of loss, but the most concerned thing is the life and spirit of those who take care of the profession. "Do not underestimate the lives and working responsibilities of many people behind the massive museums and restored historical relics, who are good at their profession in terms of responsibility.

It is not only scholars, researchers…, but also carpenters, masons, mechanics, people in charge of chemicals, biologists… Preserving, maintaining, and restoring a relic or artifact is actually not simple, it requires the cooperation of a group of people working in many different specialized professions,” Mr. Thien explained.

From this perspective, the role of the team of people working in the Museum industry is not simple. There are people who have quietly pursued restoration and conservation work for decades, quietly and patiently participating in restoration projects and plans to complete collections of extremely valuable artifacts.

The effort and intelligence they put into the artifacts they have, therefore, cannot be measured in money or working days. “Turn the page of earth, brighten the page of life”, is the comment Mr. Thien made, clearly pointing out that the people involved have never had a day off from their responsibility to preserve and maintain historical traces and evidence of time…

Needs thorough attention!

Mr. Huynh Dinh Quoc Thien said that at the Da Nang Museum alone, there are currently 39 people doing specialized work in restoring and preserving artifacts. This number, compared to the amount of work involved in collecting and protecting artifacts and documents that need to be displayed at local museums, is a big difference.

In 2024 alone, with the Da Nang City Appraisal Council agreeing to purchase 101 artifacts and groups of artifacts for the Da Nang Museum, including Cham and Nguyen Dynasty historical and cultural artifacts; paper money and metal coins; artifacts from the subsidy period, groups of marine life specimens, butterfly and insect specimens; groups of ceramic artifacts from the Nguyen Dynasty, groups of ancient ceramic artifacts from the Central provinces, groups of ancient lamps and clocks, etc., not everyone can imagine the amount of work they have to do.

However, up to now, policies and regimes for the team of museum professionals are still very limited. Not only in terms of material and spiritual life, professionals also need to be equipped and retrained in many issues of knowledge, skills, and grasp of new techniques and new requirements.

For example, in the field of digitization, the investment in equipment and software to digitize and computerize documents and artifacts in museums requires billions of dong. Issues related to copyright, training skills to grasp and apply scientific data to work are all difficult questions for those who work in professional management of conservation and museums.

“Behind the tours, exhibitions, and trips to museums, how many of us pay attention to the people who quietly clean, repair each display platform, and check the current state of the artifacts? How many people care that when the rainy season comes, there will be wooden objects, terracotta objects, books, paper, etc. in the museum that can be damaged, wet, or moldy?

All of them are historical traces that we must spend billions of dong to preserve, because if they are lost, they cannot be saved anymore," Mr. Thien confided.

Without the insiders, who quietly check and restore day by day, it would be difficult to preserve and protect the huge amount of historical past. Therefore, according to Mr. Thien, society and especially the management levels must have a different and better perspective, paying attention to the position and role of museum professionals, the lifelong witnesses of "keeping history by hand".

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/nhung-nguoi-giu-su-bang-tay-108600.html