Phu My Pagoda

Like many other pagodas, Phu My Pagoda is a religious architectural work dedicated to Buddha. According to the content of the inscription “Dien chu bi chi” made in the 10th year of Minh Menh’s reign (1829), Phu My Pagoda was built long ago. In the 11th year of Bao Dai’s reign (1936), the pagoda underwent a major restoration. The pagoda’s ground plan and architectural layout are T-shaped, consisting of the Tien Duong (Front Hall) and Tam Bao (Three Jewels Hall), with a Tam Quan (three-entrance gate) in front. The Tien Duong is a transverse building with five bays and two side bays built in the style of closed gable walls, with ngai arms and two sloping roofs covered with old ri tiles. The roof-supporting trusses are made in three slightly different styles on a plan with four rows of wooden columns. The two gable trusses are made in the style of upper stacked beams, lower side beams, and visible braces. The two trusses of the central bay are made in a simple square-section rafter-and-brace style. The remaining trusses are made in the style of upper chien frame, lower passing braces and side beams, and visible braces.

The Tam Bao is a three-bay longitudinal building connected to the central bay of the Tien Duong, built in the style of two-tiered, four-roofed overlapping eaves. The truss structure is made in a simple square-section rafter-and-brace style. Inside the Tam Bao Hall, gradually higher platforms are built from the outside inward as the place where the Buddhist altar is located.

Although the pagoda’s wooden architectural components have decorative patterns, the artistic carving in the pagoda is mainly concentrated in the system of round statues on the Buddhist altar. Currently, Phu My Pagoda has 37 Buddha statues, one Nine-Dragon throne, several Mother Goddess statues, and a statue of Saint Tran. The round statue system is mainly made of wood and paper-mache, dating from the 18th–19th centuries. In addition, the pagoda still preserves a bronze bell dated 1818, two Tho Ha incense burners dated to the 18th century, one terracotta incense burner from the 19th century, two stone steles from the Nguyen dynasty, one horizontal plaque, a pair of couplets, and many other ritual objects such as flags, wooden fish, bells...

The traditional festival of Phu My Village is held annually from the 11th to the 13th day of the 11th lunar month, with the main festival day being the 12th day of the 11th lunar month.

Phu My Pagoda was ranked as a national architectural and artistic relic under Decision No. 52/2001/QD-BVHTT dated December 28, 2001, by the Ministry of Culture and Information, now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.