Thai Hoa Palace occupies a key area in Hue Citadel
The Hue Monuments Conservation Center (HMCC) in the past few weeks had been collecting artefacts around the place ground for safe-keeping, said its Director.
“Our team managed to unearth parts of the foundation to determine its infrastructure, materials, and how to best restore and preserve the stone steps, foundation as well as the whole Thai Hoa Palace complex”, he stated.
The archaeological process at Thai Hoa Palace lasted from June 5 to 22, 2021.
Having withstood floods, hailstorms and extreme heat, Thai Hoa Palace with its weakened frames and leaking roofs had undergone over 20 restorations which altered its architecture in major ways, experts said.
Having withstood floods, hailstorms and extreme heat, Thai Hoa Palace with its weakened frames and leaking roofs had undergone over 20 restorations which altered its architecture in major ways, experts said.
Before work began, HCMM at a conference in January 2021 proposed its plan to dismantle the whole frame structure of Thai Hoa Palace for restoration, but experts were concerned that the parts could be replaced with counterfeits.
There were also suggestions to establish a unique category of restoration for this structure, which has been recognized as a documentary heritage in the Asia-Pacific region.
To conclude the meeting, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism requested relevant agencies to carry out necessary preservation measures, collect more data on the scientific basis for ground restoration, and make the best effort to preserve the structure, paint coats and decorative elements as much as possible, especially on the gable and roof of the palace.
Thai Hoa Palace covers a surface area of 1,440m², with adjacent sub-houses decorated with overlapping glazed roof tiles and a throne room of great magnitude, the place of coronation of the Nguyen kings. It is the most prominent heritage in the Complex of Hue Monuments which was dubbed the first World Cultural Heritage of Vietnam by UNESCO.
