INTRODUCTION
The ancient Tai textiles of Vietnam are the traditional
folk arts and culutral heritage of the area. They are
valuanle to us because their style, techniques, and
deliberate designs reflect the origins, history, social
relationships and way of life of the people.
The subject of Tai textiles is extremely broad and
still requires extensive research. In this papwer,
we are concerned only with textile patterns and design.
We hope that this study will contribute to the growing
body of knowledge about Tai textiles for they express
the beauty of the Tai spirit.
Tai textile patterns are comprised of several types
:
- vegetation
- zoological images
- technology (tools)
- objects
- miscellaneous
All of these design types can be seen at the Phung
Nguuyen-Dong Son sites-ancient cultural sites in Vietnam
and its adjacent area. It is impossible for us to
know the real origins these textiles and their designs.
We only hope to examine the ain styles which are visible
at those ancient sites and which are still employed
in modern decoration. With these limitations in mind,
we want to outline here-in this articl -the distinguishing
features of Tai decorative art in the ages ofPhung
Nguyen-Dong Son culture.
