Hanoi Heritage House

This traditional merchant’s house is one of the best-restored properties in the Old Quarter. Its rooms are filled with fine furniture and are arranged around two courtyards. Note the high steps between rooms, which are a traditional design element intended to prevent the flow of negative energy throughout the property. Crafts and trinkets, such as silver jewelry, basketwork, and Vietnamese tea sets, are for sale here, and a calligrapher or other craftsperson is usually also present.

This former house at 87 Ma Ma Street is situated in the heart of the 36 Guild District, the oldest shopping district in the Vietnamese capital, also known as the Hanoi Old Quarter.

In the late 19th century, when Ma May Street was a bustling commercial street known as “Black Pavillion Street” because the army of the Black Pavilions had arrived from China, the house was constructed. As the dike had not yet been constructed, Ma May Street was the hub of a very active river port at the confluence of the Tô Lich River and the Red River.

The countryside surrounding Hanoi is dotted with craft villages that have come to sell their wares along the riverbanks in the capital.

The home number 87 Ma May was devoted to commerce and never deviated from the norm. The house had been inhabited by several generations of merchants, and until 1954 it was a shop selling medicinal herbs. The Vietnamese government then commandeered the house to house five families until 1999. It included a grocer, a civil servant, a tailor, and even a martial arts instructor.

Finally, the house has been renovated in conjunction with the French cities of Hanoi and Toulouse. The three-story structure was constructed in the backyard. Internal subdivisions added over time were demolished to restore the original structure of the house. The house was opened to the public on October 27, 1999. In 2004, it became a Vietnamese heritage property from the last century.