Photo Gallery

87 Ma May House (built late 19th century)

The 87 Ma May house is a classic example of late 19th-century housing in Hanoi's Old Quarter. It was renovated by a UNESCO-funded organization to a close approximation of its original condition. Many houses in the Old Quarter are known as "tube houses" since they can be as long as 70 meters and as narrow as two meters--this developed as an attempt to minimize taxes, as each property was taxed according to the width of the street-facing facade. To allow for sufficient light in these narrow dwellings, it was necessary to design multiple courtyards along the length of each house. Although the 87 Ma May house is comparatively wide, it was designed along the same principals.

Sketch plan of 87 Ma May House (approximate and not to scale).
Drawn by the author, Timothy M. Ciccone, based on photographs. Copyright 2008.

Location

The approximate location of the house is 21.034209' N, 105.853452' E (WGS 84 map datum).