Vietnamese Silk Lanterns – A Pleasure To Touch, A Delight To Behold

Countries in Asia have always loved to use lights as a part of their celebrations. Indians have used earthen lamps as sacred decorations for years, while the Chinese and Vietnamese cultures have preferred using lanterns. While the Chinese prefer paper lanterns, the Vietnamese are known for large, colorful lanterns made from silk. Vietnamese silk lanterns are considered to be the most beautiful lanterns in the world. Made from natural Vietnamese silk, these lanterns come in a wide range of colors, shapes and sizes.

While lanterns are used in a large number of festivals in Vietnam, special lanterns are made for lantern festivals and Mid-Autumn festival (Tet Trung Thu). For the most part of its history, Vietnamese people have been making lanterns with oil lamps inside. These lanterns, spherical and hexagonal in shape, were hung in the eaves on the side of doors. During the sixteenth and seventeenth century merchants from Japan and other oriental countries began to come frequently to Vietnam for business.

The traders from Japan would hang the lanterns outside their shops, and the lanterns would light up the whole area. With the passage of time, the Vietnamese also adopted the fashion and the lanterns used to hang outside their houses. Over the time, people began to compete with their neighbors to create the most vibrant and colorful lanterns. While traditional Vietnamese lanterns retained their hexagonal and cylindrical shape, artists began to use a wide variety of colors and designs for making innovative lanterns.

Apart from their distinct shapes and designs, another major distinguishing quality of Vietnamese silk lanterns is the material that they are made up of. Only those lanterns that are made from the silk of silk worms in Vietnam can be called Vietnamese silk lanterns. Unlike paper lanterns and lanterns made from synthetic material, the silk ones feel smooth when you touch them. While paper lanterns feel ephemeral, silk lanterns are like works of art that people work hard to preserve for a long time.

Over the years, artists from different communities competed with each other; each tried to outdo the other. As a consequence, Vietnam has some of the largest and most dazzling silk lanterns in the world. Also, a single lantern can have several colors and design patterns. So, it is difficult to find more beautiful lanterns in any part of the world.

If you stroll on the streets of Vietnam during the celebration of any of its traditional festivals, your eyes will light up with joy. Lanterns shaped like butterflies, stars, fish and spinning tops will fill your vision. Silk lanterns from Hoi-An city in Vietnam are world famous. Artists from Vietnam take contracts from different parts of the world, and they create some of the largest, most innovative and costliest lanterns in the world.

However, the trend of using Vietnamese silk lanterns for home and party decoration has gained popularity in the West, and many online sites selling silk lanterns have come up. While the silk lanterns cost a lot more compared to the ones made from paper, you can easily buy attractive and colorful silk lanterns from online stores. This option can help you feel the smooth touch and the ethereal glow of lanterns from Vietnam at rates that won't burn a hole in your pocket.