PHU THO (VNS) — Authorities in the northern province of Phu Tho on Tuesday received a collection of wooden printing blocks featuring the origin of Vietnamese people believed to be carved under the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945) from the leaders of the National Archives Department.

This is the first-ever printing blocks collection of its kind that has been handed to the province, home to a complex of temples dedicated to the Hung kings.

The 36.5x20cm blocks contain Han or Nom (Vietnamese demotic characters modified from Chinese Han) characters telling the legend of the Hung kings.

The collection was kept in Ha Noi's Temple of Literature before being moved to the Hue Citadel under the reigns of kings Minh Mang (1791-1841) and Thieu Tri (1807-47) together with many other printing blocks of official literature and history documents composed during the Nguyen Dynasty.

The collection will be displayed at Hung Vuong Museum in the temple complex.

Legends say the Vietnamese nation was founded by Hung kings nearly 50 centuries ago. To honour the Founding Fathers, the Hung Vuong National Altar was built in 250 BC in Phu Tho Province. On the 10th day of the third lunar month, thousands of Vietnamese flock to the altar to commemorate their ancestors. — VNS