On the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival, this set of photos capturing the festive atmosphere by Léon Busy (1874-1951) was shared on many community pages. The photos were taken by him in 1915 on Hang Gai Street, Hanoi , and are now in the Albert Kahn Museum, France.

In the picture, the photographer captured carp and star lanterns - familiar children's toys.

Carp lanterns are one of the traditional toys loved by children. The image of carp appears in the legend of crossing the Dragon Gate, to "transform into a dragon" it must overcome many challenges. Thereby, the item symbolizes perseverance and effort to achieve success.

A shop selling colorful masks and lanterns.

Mid-Autumn atmosphere on Hang Gai Street more than a century ago. The work was displayed at the Hanoi photo exhibition, Colors 1914-1917 , held at the end of 2013.

According to the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Association, the Mid-Autumn Festival usually begins in Hanoi's Old Quarter, where bustling trading activities take place. Among them, Hang Gai Street sells many types of toys, commonly lanterns shaped like animals.

In the book Old Hanoi Streets , culturalist Hoang Dao Thuy wrote: "From the first of August, the whole street is bustling. All the mothers and children of Hanoi come to Hang Gai Street. All the shops in the street have turned into shops selling Mid-Autumn Festival paper toys. Paper elephants, paper horses, rabbit lanterns, three-legged toads, fish transforming into dragons, lion heads, military lanterns..."

Mid-Autumn Festival toys are handmade, with many designs from traditional to modern.

In 1909, Mr. Albert Kahn (1860-1940) - a French banker and philanthropist - wanted to establish a "Planetary Archive", including photographic materials about 50 countries using the most advanced color photography techniques at that time. To carry out the project, he hired a series of photographers to travel to different countries, including Léon Busy to Vietnam.

During his time here, Mr. Busy also took many photos of Hanoi's landscape and Northern women. In April 2023, the photographer's works were introduced at an event themed Hanoi - The Beginning of a Western-style City in Southeast Asia.

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