Published:  00:00 Tuesday - August 17, 2010

An exhibition entitled, “Urban planning and administrative boundaries of Hanoi in the period 1873-1954" opened at the National Archives Centre I in Hanoi on Aug. 16 as part of celebrations of the millennium of the capital city.

The exhibition introduces 68 historic maps of Hanoi and nine important documents to help visitors learn about Hanoi through this period. There are some original cloth maps which are considered precious documents and have great historical value.

The documentation is divided into four sections, corresponding to the periods of planning and expanding the administrative boundaries of Hanoi.

The first section includes documents dating from 1873 to 1895 - the period marking the presence of the French in determining the boundaries and expansion plan in order to build Hanoi into a European-style city.

The second part includes documents dating from 1895 to 1927, a popular period for French architecture. Today, many streets in Hanoi still have French-style architecture.

The remaining parts of the exhibition are divided into two periods dating from 1928 to 1945 and from 1946 to 1954.