Đồ đồng · Đại Bái
Decorative bronze
Nothing from that village in this craft at the moment. New works arrive each month; the letter will tell you.
Looking for something that is not here — a size, a colour, a pair? Most of our artisans take commissions, and we will carry the conversation for you.
Commission a workAbout the craft
A thousand years of pouring before dawn
Where it is made
Đại BáiGia Bình, Bắc Ninh35 kmBronze was the first art of the delta — the Đông Sơn drums are two thousand years old — and Đại Bái, across the river in Bắc Ninh, has cast it for a thousand. The temples ordered their bells and censers here; the court ordered drums. The foundry still pours before dawn, in one movement, into a sand mould that is broken to free the work.
What follows the pour is longer: weeks of small chisels chasing the drum patterns into the cooled surface, then the village's own patina, left to deepen. We ask that the patina be left alone; it is the work.
Burners, bells and vessels here are cast once each. Prices include crating, insured shipping and duties; heavier pieces travel by sea.
The makers
Caring for bronze
Leave the patina alone; it is the work. Dust with a soft brush. Do not polish with metal cleaners — if you want a brighter surface, ask us and we will tell you what the foundry uses. Keep incense burners on a tile.
Full care notes