Hoan Kiem Lake (meaning "Lake of the Returned Sword" or "Lake of the Restored Sword") is located in the historical center of Hanoi. According to the legend, in early 1428, Emperor Lê Lợi was boating on the lake when a Golden Turtle God (Kim Qui) surfaced and asked for his magic sword, Heaven's Will. Lợi concluded that Kim Qui had come to reclaim the sword that its master, a local God, the Dragon King (Long Vương) had given Lợi some time earlier, during his revolt against Ming China. Later, Emperor Lợi gave the sword back to the turtle after he finished fighting off the Chinese.
Emperor Lợi renamed the lake to commemorate this event, from its former name Luc Thuy meaning "Green Water". The Turtle Tower (Tháp Rùa) standing on a small island near the centre of lake is linked to the legend. The first name of Hoàn Kiếm lake is Tả Vọng, when the King haven't gave the Magical Sword back to the Golden Turtle God (Cụ Rùa). Large soft-shell turtles, either of the species Rafetus swinhoei or a separate species named Rafetus leloi in honor of the emperor, had been sighted in the lake for many years. The last known individual was found dead on January 19, 2016. There are three remaining turtles of the species R. swinhoei.
Near the northern shore of the lake lies Jade Island on which the Temple of the Jade Mountain (Ngoc Son Temple) stands. The temple was erected in the 18th century. It honors the 13th-century military leader Tran Hung Dao who distinguished himself in the fight against the Yuan Dynasty, Van Xuong, a scholar, and Nguyen Van Sieu, a Confucian master and famous writer in charge of repairs made to the temple in 1864. Jade Island is connected to the shore by the wooden red-painted The Huc Bridge (The Huc, meaning Morning Sunlight Bridge).
On the shore of the lake can be seen five young women in traditional clothes: the silk tunic (áo dài) worn over pantaloons, and the standard conical nón lá.
About the stamps
The stamp was issued on November 6, 2017, to mark the APEC Conference. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a forum for 21 Pacific Rim member economies that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. It was established in 1989 in response to the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies and the advent of regional trade blocs in other parts of the world; to defuse fears that highly industrialised Japan (a member of G8) would come to dominate economic activity in the Asia-Pacific region; and to establish new markets for agricultural products and raw materials beyond Europe.
The second stamp is part of the series The 40th Anniversary od Diplomatic Relations with Thailand - Joint Issue with Thailand, about which I wrote here.
References
Hoàn Kiếm Lake - Wikipedia
Hoan Kiem Lake - Vietnam Online
Sender: Matthew Lai KH (direct swap)
Sent from Hanoi (Red River Delta / Vietnam), on 14.12.2017
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