Binh Thuy Ancient House, a precious gem in the heart of Can Tho, is not only a prominent tourist attraction but also a cultural heritage that has been preserved almost intact to this day. The house, built in 1870, is a living testament to the unique cultural exchange, where Eastern architecture subtly blends with Western touches, creating a beauty that is both ancient and modern, attracting tourists from all over the world.
Listen to exciting and interesting anecdotes at famous tourist destinations in the Western Capital
From the center of Can Tho city, you only need to travel about 10km to reach Binh Thuy ancient house. The house is located at 144 Bui Huu Nghia street, Binh Thuy ward, Binh Thuy district. Since the end of the 18th century, the "good land" Can Tho has attracted residents from everywhere to settle down. Among them is the Duong family. Mr. Duong Van Vi, the third generation descendant of this family, was the one who started to build this house. Initially, the house was made of wood and roofed with tiles. 30 years later, he himself designed and rebuilt it. In 1904, he passed away and his youngest son, Duong Chan Ky, continued to build the house. It was not until 1911 that the house was truly completed.
Binh Thuy Ancient House is a place with perfect East-West architecture and is a favorite tourist destination in Can Tho.
After more than 150 years of historical ups and downs in the land of Tay Do, this is one of the rare ancient houses that is still preserved almost intact. In 2009, Binh Thuy ancient house was recognized as a national architectural and artistic relic. And this place always becomes an attractive destination for all tourists on their journey to explore the river delta of the West.
Mr. Duong Chan Ky is the owner of the house and also a wealthy businessman, a landowner with high aesthetic taste. He often likes to explore new things, popular Western trends, especially in the field of architecture. That's why when visiting Binh Thuy Ancient House, you can see that this place has an elegant French-style ancient villa architecture. Even more special is that it also has a clear feng shui mark of the Oriental people, thereby creating a harmonious space between the two Eastern and Western cultures.
Binh Thuy ancient house is built on a campus with a total area of about 6,000m2 in the East-West direction, the house floor is 1m higher than the garden area. The whole house is surrounded by ornamental plants, carefully trimmed trees and flowers blooming all year round, making the space not boring but more lively and fresh.
Because of its unique historical and artistic value, Binh Thuy Ancient House soon became an ideal filming location for directors. Specifically, many famous films of the time were filmed here such as: Cong Tu Bac Lieu, Nguoi Dep Tay Do, Nhung Duong Duong Phu Sa, Storm U Minh, No Doi, Dong Song Hoa Trang, Doi Nu Dac Dong Mua Thu...
This place is also the setting of many famous movies.
The classic films shot here also partly depict the unique cultural values of the West during that period and captivated the hearts of audiences with the liberal and lyrical features of the Southern river region. The most special of which is the world-famous film: "The Lover" (1992) by veteran director Jean Jacques Annaud (France).
Architecture with unique East-West fusion
Anyone who admires Binh Thuy ancient house for the first time will have a different feeling about the architecture here. There is a unique blend of Eastern and Western architectural features. At the time when Mr. Duong Chan Ky built the house, Western culture was popular. Therefore, many European architectural features appear in the house. This explains why Binh Thuy ancient house is both ancient and solemn, yet elegant and liberal.
Unique architecture of the house
From the outside looking into Binh Thuy Ancient House, the first thing we can notice here is the fence made of iron with main pillars made of concrete. Because of this style very close to modernity, many visitors easily overlook it because they mistake it for the fence of a villa. Passing through the main gate is the three-door gate in Chinese architectural style, it is located on the right side with 4 large pillars, 2 cement pillars and 2 wooden pillars.
From the outside looking in you can see the impressive architecture
The beam system at the three-entrance gate is made of wood, with a roof covered with blue glazed tiles above. The top is decorated with many vivid shapes such as goldfish, unicorns, flowers and leaves. The most special thing is that there are 2 large signs here: "Phuoc An Hieu" in Chinese and "Phu Tho Ho Duong" in Vietnamese. From the yard, observing the exterior architecture of Binh Thuy Ancient House, you will admire an extremely delicate beauty. It comes from the extremely vivid sculptures and carvings on the pillars, door arches and house borders. Not to mention, the ancient house also impresses with 2 arched staircases leading inside. If you look closely, you can see 2 large bronze lamps from the French colonial period placed in front of the facade on both sides of the staircase.
The house was built in 1870, with oriental architecture mixed with a bit of Western breath.
This house is a subtle combination of Eastern and Western architecture, breaking the traditional three-room house rule of Western people by building five large rooms, creating a living space that is both solemn and cozy.
The dark brick floor, imported directly from France, is one of the special highlights of the house, bringing an antique and luxurious beauty. The three main areas of the house, including the front house, the middle house and the back house, are seamlessly connected and separated by intricately carved wooden doors, demonstrating the ingenuity and sophistication of ancient craftsmen.
h. This place also has great value in research activities, learning about culture, customs and practices of the Mekong Delta in general during the transition period between the two centuries.
Stepping inside, visitors will be amazed by the beauty of the antique furniture, arranged in a symmetrical and harmonious way. The living room has a classic European style with a French Louis XV sofa set, a splendid crystal chandelier, creating a luxurious and noble reception space. In addition, other spaces in the house have a strong impression of ancient Vietnamese luxury with a set of Ming and Qing dynasty wine cups, a set of green marble tables and chairs from Yunnan, a 1.2m high green glazed jade vase, all of which contribute to vividly recreating the image of a prosperous family in that period.
Impressive space with strong oriental culture
One special thing that makes many tourists admire the owner of Binh Thuy ancient house is that although the house bears the strong mark of a combination of Eastern and Western culture, the family's worship space still retains its own pure Vietnamese features. This shows the sophistication and aesthetic sense of the Duong family, who has skillfully absorbed the modern features of Western culture while still preserving the national cultural identity.
