The chicken basket used in the marriage proposal ceremony of the Pa Then people is made of bamboo woven in a diamond pattern, forming a sturdy round shape with a red fabric handle. Around the basket, colorful red fabric strips decorated with wool tassels and attached coins are carefully wrapped. For this reason, it is also called a “flower basket” and holds a solemn meaning in wedding ceremonies.

Before the marriage proposal ceremony, the groom’s family usually asks skillful women in the village to decorate the chicken basket elaborately, a process that may take nearly a full day to complete. Decorative materials mainly include fabric, wool yarn, and silk, symbolizing the wish that the bride will be skillful in weaving and embroidery. The coins attached to the basket express hopes for prosperity and a well-off life for the young couple.

Red, the dominant color of the basket, symbolizes good fortune in Pa Then beliefs. The basket contains eight capons, an important offering brought by the groom’s family to the bride’s family during the wedding ceremony. The ritual specialist, representing the groom’s family, places the basket beside the ancestral altar and formally presents the proposal, expressing wishes for a long-lasting marriage and closer ties between the two families. After the ancestral ritual, the bride’s family keeps two chickens as gifts for the groom’s family to take home, while the remaining chickens are prepared for a feast shared with relatives. Today, the chicken basket remains an indispensable traditional element preserved as a cultural value in Pa Then weddings.

This chicken basket was collected by the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Mi Bac hamlet, Tan Trinh commune, Bac Quang district (now Quang Binh district), Ha Giang province, and is currently displayed in the exhibition area on ethnic groups belonging to the Hmong–Dao language group on the second floor of the Dong Son Drum building.

Author: Vo Thi Mai Phuong
Photo: BTDTHVN