Kieu Ky Gold and Silver Leaf Beating Craft | The Essence of a 400-Year-Old Gilding Tradition

Kieu Ky gold and silver leaf beating is a traditional craft practiced in Gia Lam Commune, Hanoi. According to local tradition, the craft has existed for more than 400 years, dating back to the Later Le Dynasty. Over generations, artisans have preserved a meticulous process for transforming gold and silver into extremely thin leaves used for gilding and decorating religious, cultural, and architectural objects.

The Origins of the Craft and Its Founder

According to local tradition, the craft was founded by Nguyen Quy Tri, who learned the technique of beating gold and silver leaf while serving as an envoy to China. After returning to Vietnam, he introduced the craft to the people of Kieu Ky and taught them the techniques needed to develop the profession.

The village also preserves stories surrounding the founder and the transmission of the craft. Tradition holds that Nguyen Quy Tri disappeared on the 17th day of the eighth lunar month, which later became the date for the annual ceremony commemorating him.

At Nha Trang, a traditional workshop associated with the craft, local tradition tells that Nguyen Quoc Tri once drove a 15-centimeter harrow-tooth nail into the main pillar and declared that the craft’s techniques should not be passed outside the community. Nha Trang subsequently became an important place for worshipping the founder and transmitting the craft.

Traditionally, people wishing to learn the craft were expected to make offerings and pay respects to the founder. Because the process involved precious metals and required considerable skill, outsiders were rarely accepted as apprentices.

Traditional Ceremonies of the Craft Village

The Kieu Ky craft community preserves several traditional ceremonies connected with the profession. The Khai Tràng ceremony is held on the 11th and 12th days of the first lunar month, while the founder’s memorial ceremony takes place on the 17th day of the eighth lunar month.

These ceremonies reflect the relationship between craftsmanship, community memory, and traditional beliefs. They also provide an opportunity for artisans and residents to express their respect for the person traditionally regarded as the founder of the craft.

A Craft That Requires Patience and Precision

Gold and silver leaf beating is an intricate manual process. The craft requires artisans to carefully control the preparation of materials, the use of tools, the force of the hammer, and the working environment.

The traditional production process consists of three principal stages: making new quỳ, beating diệp, and making old quỳ, followed by the final gilding process. Each stage has its own requirements and must be carried out carefully to ensure that the precious metal can be beaten into an extremely thin leaf without tearing or being lost.

The principal materials include pure gold or silver, buffalo-hide glue, and traditional ink made from pine resin, soot, and sawdust. In the past, artisans also refined gold and silver themselves using a traditional process involving leaves, lime, clay pots, sulfur, salt, and charcoal. Today, refined gold and silver are generally purchased before production begins.

Traditional tools include a hammer with a beveled striking face, a stone anvil, scissors, a stone mortar and pestle, a specially shaped stone used for preparing ink, thick cloth, a thin spatula, and fig leaves. Although these tools may appear simple, their effective use depends on the experience and technique accumulated by generations of artisans.

Making the Special Leaf Paper

One of the most important materials in the process is lá giống, a special type of dó paper used to hold the precious metal during beating. Each sheet measures approximately 5 by 5 centimeters, and around 500 sheets are used for one quỳ.

The paper is soaked, pressed, repeatedly beaten and peeled, then coated with traditional ink on both sides. It is dried on fig leaves, and the process is repeated several times. The quality of the paper is particularly important because it must withstand repeated hammering while preventing the extremely thin gold or silver from tearing or becoming lost.

Another type of material, known as quỳ cũ, uses thicker paper measuring about 7 square centimeters, with approximately 200 to 300 sheets in a set. The paper is boiled, pressed, beaten, peeled, coated with ink, and dried before being used in the next stages of production.

From Gold and Silver to Delicate Leaves

The precious metal is first melted in a clay pot and cast into strips approximately 10 centimeters long. According to the traditional formula recorded in the craft knowledge, a small quantity of silver may be combined with gold before the material is rolled and beaten into thin strips.

The metal strip is then cut into small pieces known as diệp. These pieces are placed between layers of lá giống before being beaten with a heavy hammer on a stone surface.

After the initial beating, the material is cut again and placed into the nong quỳ. Artisans continue beating it for an extended period until the gold or silver becomes an exceptionally thin leaf. The process demands steady rhythm, controlled force, and extensive experience.

The production sequence must be followed carefully. Each stage prepares the material for the next, and skipping or changing a step can affect the quality of the finished leaf.

Work involving glue, ink, casting, and hammering requires well-ventilated areas, while other stages are carried out in enclosed rooms to reduce the risk of losing the extremely thin precious material.

At the final stage, artisans carefully recover any remaining gold or silver particles. Traditional techniques use talcum powder to prevent the delicate material from sticking to surfaces and to minimize losses during production.

Cultural and Economic Significance

Kieu Ky gold and silver leaf beating represents more than a technique for producing decorative materials. It embodies a complex body of traditional knowledge involving the selection and preparation of materials, paper making, precious-metal processing, hammering techniques, tool use, and quality control.

The craft also reflects a distinctive form of manual creativity. Producing an extremely thin sheet of precious metal requires patience, precision, careful observation, and experience passed down from one generation to another.

For the local community, the craft has also provided employment and supported livelihoods. Its continuation helps maintain community ties and preserves practical knowledge associated with traditional craftsmanship. The transmission of the profession also carries values of patience, responsibility, careful workmanship, and honesty in handling precious materials.

Kieu Ky gold and silver leaf beating was recognized as part of Vietnam’s National Intangible Cultural Heritage under Decision No. 826/QD-BVHTTDL dated March 9, 2021.

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