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Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine Saigon: Where not to be missed

20/04/2025

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The Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine is the best source of knowledge about the roots of oriental medicine, which is a must-go place for those interested in the noble work of ancient physicians.

1. About Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine Ho Chi Minh City
2. What to explore inside the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine?
3. Opening hours and entrance fee of Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine
4. Tips for your visit to Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine in Ho Chi Minh City

The Fito Museum attracts hundreds of both domestic and foreign travelers annually (Source: Collected)

If you want to put aside the hustle and bustle of Saigon, the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine should be the top choice on your bucket list. With its antique appearance and interior, this museum is not only majestic and luxurious, but it will also give you a feeling of nostalgia, peace, and coziness.

1. About Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine Ho Chi Minh City

Located in a corner of No. 41, Hoang Du Khuong street, Ward 12, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City, the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine, or the Fito Museum, was founded by Dr. Le Khac Tam with the desire to preserve valuable assets, and offer those interested in the history of traditional medicine a chance to immerse themselves in the precious treasure of ancient medicine.

The Fito Museum was built in 2003 and opened to the public in 2007. Its interior furnishings were mostly made of wood, with a multitude of sophisticated motifs. These intricately carved designs were truly hard work in the form of arts, as it took the effort of over 50 talented engravers in nearly 3 years to finish.

The Fito Museum with 2 bamboo bushes in front of the entrance – a familiar image of Vietnamese villages (Source: Collected)

2. What to explore inside the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine?

The Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine consists of 1 ground floor and 5 upper floors that are home to 18 exhibition rooms on a total area of 600m2. Moreover, the significant factor contributing to its value is the collection of over 3000 precious artifacts related to Vietnamese traditional medicine from the Stone Age.

A cozy exhibition corner inside the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine (Source: Collected)

2.1. On the 1st floor

This floor is the location where the museum staffs greet the visitors with 2 rooms:

Room 18 – The pharmacy and souvenir shop: It is located next to the ticket counter on the ground floor. All visitors are welcome to sample and purchase wine, tea, and other plant-based medicines.
Room 17 – The cinema room: There is a 50-seat movie theater here where visitors can watch a 15-minute documentary about Vietnamese traditional medicine (in multiple languages including Vietnamese, English, French, German, and Russian).

2.2. On the 2nd floor

Room 16 – the Royal Medicinal Academy, designed based on the Royal Physician Academy’s palace style, is the sole room on the second level. This academy took responsibility for caring for the King and the royal family. The numerous gold-plated wooden pictures on the wall and the delicately carved furniture in the room will give you a sense of regal luxury.

2.3. On the 3rd floor

Room 15 – The collection of tincture jugs: This room contains small wine bottles, wine jars, and wine pots whose designs and materials range widely in time, from Han Viet pottery (1st–3rd century) to modern ceramics (20th century).
Room 14 – The metal teapots collection: Numerous sophisticated teapots from different provinces of Vietnam, such as Ha Dong, Hoi An, Lai Thieu and so on are displayed in room 14.
Room 13 – The collection of scales and mortars: Items from pharmacies or the common life are exhibited, including mortars and pestles, scales (Vietnamese and Western styles) from the French colonial period in the 19th century.
Room 12 – The collection of ceramic teapots: A collection of teapots, medicine cups, and bowls, as well as mosaic paintings of scenes such as medicine-picking, decoction, pulse feeling, and prescription, can be found in this room.

The collection of decoction teapots and wine bottles at Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine (Source: Collected)

2.4. On the 4th floor

If you are curious to learn more about the work of ancient Vietnamese pharmacists, the fourth floor should not be ignored as it showcases a pharmacy simulation with various forms of medical ingredients.

Room 11 – The collection of wine jars: Storing wine was an essential step to preparing medicine, and ceramic jars were much favored by Vietnamese people because they helped to minimize the penetration of impurities. It was believed that to produce the best medicinal wine, the wine jar should be buried under the ground for hundreds of days.
Room 10 – The 19th century pharmacy model: The model includes a big wooden medicine cabinet with 81 drawers, simulating the classic 19th century pharmacy in Vietnam. Each herb is stored separately in a single drawer that has colored labels outside.
Room 9 – Apothecary’s instruments: The apothecary’s mortar and medicine root slicer were both significant tools for preparing traditional medicines. The ancient doctor used an apothecary’s mortar to turn dried herbs into powder, and the medicine root slicer to cut certain ingredients into thin slices.
Room 8 – The collection of medical ingredients: The herbs, medicinal animals, and minerals utilized in traditional medicine are displayed in this gallery. Moreover, “Vietnam Ban Thao”, a collection of artwork that includes 20 pages with pictures of various medicinal plants, is also preserved here.

The pharmacy house model attracts young people to come and take photos the most (Source: Collected)

2.5. On the 5th floor

The rooms on this level, unlike the rest, are not arranged according to any numerical order.

Room 7 – The Vietnamese traditional medicinal tree: What attracts visitors from the first sight is the wonderfully carved wooden painting “Vietnam Bach Gia Y.” In the center of the picture is a giant tree, on which are the name labels of 100 famous physicians from the 12th to the early 20th century.
Room 3 – The prehistoric traditional medicine instruments: Items from the Stone and Bronze Ages related to traditional medicine are shown in this room.
Room 2 – The Altar of Medicine: Placed solemnly in the middle of the room is the altar of two ancestors of medicine: Tue Tinh and Hai Thuong Lan Ong (Le Huu Trac). On both sides of the altar hang the horizontal lacquered wooden board and parallel sentences painted in vermilion and gold like the ancestral altars of ancient wealthy families.
Room 1 – The history of Vietnamese traditional medicine: The timeline of history of Vietnamese traditional medicine highlights significant events and noteworthy figures during the formation and advancement processes.

The painting “Vietnam Bach Gia Y” honors 100 physicians who laid the foundation for Vietnamese traditional medicine (Source: Nguyen Ky Anh)

2.6. On the 6th floor

The highest floor of this Ho Chi Minh City museum can give you an overview of oriental medicine history and the Great people who contributed to Vietnamese traditional medicine.

Room 6 – An overview of oriental traditional medicine: The synopsis of oriental medicine with the history of Vietnamese, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese medicine shall be revealed in this room. Foreign tourists often express their admiration and interest in the artifacts and the knowledge at the Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine.
Room 5 – The Cham tower: The structure of Cham tower embraces the distinctive traditional architectural traits of several Vietnamese regions. In addition, you can see that the entrance to Thang Long, Hanoi, is simulated on the other side of this tiny tower.
Room 4 – Vietnamese physicians: There are 15 images portraying well-known physicians of traditional Vietnamese medicine from the 13th to the 18th centuries. These works of art were made using traditional Vietnamese handicraft techniques, particularly the painting on yellow parchment paper.

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3. Opening hours and entrance fee of Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine

Opening hours: 8.30 am – 5 pm everyday
Entrance fee:

- Adults: 120,000 VND/person
- Children (under 1.2 meters tall): 60,000 VND/person

4. Tips for your visit to Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine in Ho Chi Minh City

If you want to experience memorable moments as well as avoid unexpected situations when dropping by this museum – one of the best museums in Ho Chi Minh City, make sure you remember these following tips:

Do not get mixed up between 2 museums founded by Dr. Le Khac Tam: Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine in Ho Chi Minh City and Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Pharmacy in Binh Duong.
Don’t forget to try different activities after the tour, namely trying on the traditional attire of a physician and taking pictures; directly participating in the drug preparation process, including cutting, spreading and tasting medicine.
Finish your unforgettable tour with a cup of warm red lingzhi mushroom tea.
Feel free to touch the artifacts, except for those in the glass cabinets. But please be careful when touching them.

Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine is a cultural place for those who want to find out about the historical and humanitarian values that the medicine profession brings to humanity. If you are planning to gain insight into the museum of Ho Chi Minh City, it is highly recommended that you visit this unique and nostalgic destination.

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Museum of Traditional Vietnamese Medicine