Son Dong Communal House

Son Dong Communal House

Son Dong Communal House is located in Thuong Village, Son Dong Commune, Hanoi City. It is an ancient communal house associated with the thousand-year history of the Doai region and the famous craft village of statue carving and vermilion lacquering with gold gilding.

In terms of architecture, the communal house strongly bears the traditional style of the Northern Delta region, with an imposing three-entrance gate, a solemn Main Hall, and a Rear Sanctuary. This place is likened to a vivid "art museum," displaying the pinnacle carving and lacquering-gilding techniques of the village's woodworking artisans. All horizontal plaques, parallel couplets, altar curtains, and worship statues are exquisitely crafted from jackfruit wood, traditional lacquer, and splendid gold leaf, evidence of the creative aspiration of a craft village recently honored in the World Craft Cities Network.

Every year, on the 6th day of the 2nd lunar month, the Son Dong village communal house festival takes place vibrantly, attracting a large number of local people and visitors from near and far. In the ceremonial part, the tray of offerings for feasting the troops never lacks round glutinous rice cakes, steamed rice rolls, and buffalo meat, recalling the time when martial generals trained soldiers in the past. The liveliest highlight of the festival part is the unique Giang Bong custom in the communal house yard. The flower pole is a fresh male bamboo segment, carefully selected from virtuous and blessed families, with exactly five nodes symbolizing the five blessings; its body is shaved into pure white fibers and beautifully decorated. When the flower pole is thrown into the crowd, young men compete fiercely together, and the winner demonstrates endurance, skill, courage, and intelligence. The festival not only expresses a martial spirit and strong community cohesion but is also a lasting spiritual bond that preserves the complete "soul and essence" of local culture across generations.

Son Dong Communal House was ranked as a historical, architectural, and artistic relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1986.