He is Lam Phong - a first class specialist in ancient objects, a member of the provincial museum who has changed his job to become a dealer of ancient objects. He has activities and ideas familiar to the vietnamese ancient objects market. His opinions are very useful for the opening of the vietnamese market of ancient onjects.
He is Lam Phong - a first class specialist in ancient objects, a member of the provincial museum who has changed his job to become a dealer of ancient objects. He has activities and ideas familiar to the vietnamese ancient objects market. His opinions are very useful for the opening of the vietnamese market of ancient onjects.
Reporter Can you say about the ancient objects market in China in general, of Kuangsi in particular ?
Lam Phong It is a sinusoidal form market. Before 1978, the chinese market is semi-official. After 1978, the law acknowledges that ancient objects are a sort of special goods and must have a market. Since then, Kuangsi in particular and China in general, is very active in this business. However, to put a brake to the too hot development of this activity, the state gives birth to shops of the trade of ancient objects the first of which is the General Company of Cultural Objects (of short existence). With this sort of shops, the state hopes to condition the market, strengthen the management. The shop has the main role of buying objects from the population to furnish to the museum. Only the recent objects, of low quality, of current use are allowed to be sold to animate the shop. But this is not the common formula for the whole of China. On the 28th of October 2002, a new law acknowledges the existence of a free market of ancient objects, with the consequence that the market of chinese antiquities in general, of Kuangsi in particular, develops rapidly, in disorder, so that the model of state shop cannot regulate and the market development outpasses the state policy.
Reporter Since they can no more condition the market, why do they continue to exist and develop?
Lam Phong They exist but are much weakened. They have no more monopoly, can no more compete with various components of this market, by the weakness of its economic potentialities, by the weakness of its personal, by its cumbersome organization, by its inappropriate mechanisms. Our shops follow always the model of state shops with benefits. This type of shops is however useful for the antiquity market. It does not develop at all but stays backward in comparison with the situation before October 2002.
Reporter So, by permitting the model of state shops to subsist, you have encountered many difficulties?
Lam Phong So it is. First, financially. Sometimes, shops must follow the market and encounter troublesome circumstances, influencing the protection and management of cultural vestiges of the country.
Reporter The chinese law stipules that ancient objects of age of less than 100 years can be exported, but those of more than 100 years cannot. Thus this trade remains in the law’s limits, so active may it be. That means that the ancient objects cannot leave the country and remains in the hands of the collectors.
Lam Phong That is true. But a hot market excites excavation, and robbery of ancient objects in the vestiges. The big richmen, having collections, are nevertheless not the representatives of the state. So rich may they be, they do not represent the cultural physionomy of the country. The free development of private collections is an unhealthy manifestation of culture. I think that the new law destroys cutural patrimony, and one cannot predict the level of this destruction in 100 years later.
Reporter Can you give us the number of collectors in Kuangsi and in the southern provinces of China?
Lam Phong We have determined norms for true collectors. They must have technics and determined knowledges in the domain of their collection. They are not professional traders, though they do make exchanges. They possess many high quality collections. Their number is about 30 at Kuangsi, and 300 at Jiangsi. If the norms are widened, this number is 3000 at Kuangsi and tens of thousands at Jiangsi.
Reporter Among these tens of thousands, are there those who collect false ancient objects without knowing it?
Lam Phong There are. Many. They spend millions of chinese currency to buy false objects. Now, false objects in China are really super. The riches are spent in a heap of “ancient objects” which they think to be one of the three goods superbenefit. It is also a terrible destruction of the economy: if invested in other domains, this money would produce so much bebefit to the people.
Reporter Have you recommendations for the market of ancient objects of Vietnam?
Lam Phong Vietnam is a little country, the management of ancient objects and of their market is not so complicated as in China. Vietnam can learn the lesson from those who comes before and will have the advantage of those who comes after. However, before deciding to open the market of ancient objects under the state management, one must think over a lot. I think that Vietnam must open first two test doors at the two large towns: Hanoi and Hochiminhtown. It must invite experienced specialists from Great Britain, Russia, China as councillors to explore all the hidden places of the domain. It must use specialists for 4 or 5 years before being able to work alone.
The state shops must coexist with private ones. But state shops must be the leading shops and must be able to manage the private ones. For that, the state shops must do the formation of young forces, highly qualified, financially strong, able to lead the private forces. One must install a good juridical corridor. In this way, one can keep the ancient objects for the museums, for the state, one can keep healthy the market of ancient objects, which contains many “hidden” and “black” forces.
Being a museum worker, I am constantly thinking about what to do so that all the activities of the ancient objects market aim at keeping the ancient objects for the country, for the museums. With such a thought and acting after this morale, I am not a successful “businessman”.
Reporter Thank you for the interesting and useful conversation.