The favourite occupation of the collectors is to make collections. To collect by means of exchanges, gifts, etc. , it is already things of the past when the country enters into market economy. The most usual act is to buy. To buy until the last penny, in spite of ladies protestations, it is a bad but “lovely” habit, for even rich countries need such fans to be able to preserve the national cultural patrimony.
The favourite occupation of the collectors is to make collections. To collect by means of exchanges, gifts, etc. , it is already things of the past when the country enters into market economy. The most usual act is to buy. To buy until the last penny, in spite of ladies protestations, it is a bad but “lovely” habit, for even rich countries need such fans to be able to preserve the national cultural patrimony.
But “what to collect” is the important thing which few collectors are able to determine. There is a time when, by law’s defect, it was not stipulated that archaeological researches must precede works of construction, with the result that ancient objects discovered during these constructions are exposed to the open air and become the booty of collectors. American bombs have dug pits and uncovered ancient objects which collectors hasten to gather during and after the war. During a long time, temples and pagodas are used as class-rooms, warehouses are serving the resistance, and parallel sentences, big character panels, statues of Buddha are scattered and gathered by collectors, which gives birth to a generation of young collectors, beside old people which inherit ancient objects from their ancestors.
This time has elapsed. All the sus-mentioned objects have now their archaeological or religious origin, and cannot be part of a collection without violating the Law on cultural patrimony. Such collecting encourages the destructors of archaeological sites which have suffered to many damages at the present speed of construction and urbanisation.
Moreover, during the process of integration, international laws and practices must be applied in Vietnam. Ancient objects having an archaeological origin will not be accepted in the market. I have visited antiquity shops, both state and private, in China. No ancient object having such an origin is to be found there. The shop owner seems quite astonished when hearing of the existence of shops selling such ancient objects. China is very rich in ancient objects buried in the earth, and suffers from a serious state of ancient objects robbery, but after integration, the conscience of traffickers, and of people in general, has been greatly raised.
Once, while dining with workers from european museums, I heard them speak of the protestation against a newly created museum the direction of which is intending to collect ancient objects of archaeological origin to exhibit. They seem very shocked, but agree with themselves to raise the question at another meeting where are not present the representatives of the damaged countries, not to shock them.
Another time, 10 years ago, I was leading a group of representatives of mundial museums, coming from Sueden, to visit a private room of ancient objects. They are astonished that ancient objects of archaeological origin were private properties. I tried to explain this fact by historical reasons but they are not convinced for such things never happen in Sweden.
The Law on cultural patrimonies consists of concrete stipulations. Let collectors, and everybody, apply them.
Pham Quoc Quan