A Vietnamese collector shows off one his prized possessions – a 19th-century gold and silver book associated with King Thieu Tri (1841-47).
Collector Cao Xuan Truong with the gold book of King Thien Tri, VietnamNet 20120225
Gold-inlaid ancient book worth $100,000
VietnamNet, 25 February 2012
A book of Vietnamese King Thieu Tri, which is made of silver and gilded with gold, was brought from France to Vietnam by an antique collector Cao Xuan Truong last year.
Truong won an auction in Paris to buy this book, at the cost of Euro72,750. The book was King Thieu Tri’s gift to his concubine Vu Thi Vien in 1846. The book is 14x23cm in size, with five sheets, weighing nearly 2kg. It has 186 Chinese scripts about the concubine. The book cover is carved with dragons. King Thieu Tri reigned from 1841-1847.
In his house at No. 31, Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi, which has many antiques of Vietnam and China, Truong said that the gold-plated book is his most favorite item.
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