A rare book about An Nam was given to the Hue Royal Antiques Museum in the central province of Thua Thien Hue yesterday by an overseas Vietnamese couple, Bui Thi Cam Ha and Le Thai.

A rare book about An Nam was given to the Hue Royal Antiques Museum in the central province of Thua Thien Hue yesterday by an overseas Vietnamese couple, Bui Thi Cam Ha and Le Thai.

The book, titled Technique du peuple Annamite (Mechanics and crafts of the Annamites) by the French writer Henri Oger, is the fourth original version in Viet Nam, according to Doctor Phan Thanh Hai, director of the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre.

Oger spent two years from 1908-09 studying Ha Noi's old quarter and outskirts to record the working day of Vietnamese as well as making an inventory of the development of local industries and commerce.

With the help of Vietnamese painters, Oger made about 4,200 drawings which were printed on do (poonah) paper. The drawings have captions written in Nom (Chinese-transcribed Vietnamese script).

The 348 page-book is 62cm by 44cm and 5.4cm thick.

It features Vietnamese traditional crafts such as paper making, sculpture, cuisine, construction, tailoring and daily customs, including weddings, funerals and New Year.