Abstract

Terracotta is a type of material with a rich history in the lives of the Vietnamese people, often used as bricks, decorative roofing tiles in architecture, and embellished with intricate sculpting and shaping techniques. According to the Vietnam Architecture history, some of the first explored earthenware artifacts are found around the Ly regime, Tran dynasty, and the Chinese colonial period (the 1st century BC) in Co Loa citadel (Dong Anh district, Hanoi) and Luy Lau citadel (Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh city). The relics such as carefully-made earthenware bricks and tiles reveal a thriving of this material in this era. After several hundred years, though some terracotta artifacts are no longer present on several ancient buildings, they are still kept as part of a precious heritage that contributes to the creation of system of unique figures and symbols of Vietnamese traditional architectural decorative art. Although those mentioned ruins are damaged, they provide favorable conditions for us to revive the ornamental art of terracotta in traditional architecture, which essentially contributes to the precious heritages system. This article touches on decorative terracotta art in Vietnamese architecture, exemplified by terracotta artifacts uncovered in national heritage sites such as Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, Thang Long Royal Palace, Hue Ancient Capital, which will allow us to see the role and value of terracotta in traditional architecture in Vietnam.