We knew it was not going to be "literature" in any Western sense. A better rendering might be Temple of Learning. From the 11th century on, it was a school of higher learning, created to educate prospective mandarins and then to select the best of them, on behalf of the king/emperor/whatever. Mandarins were the high officials who governed the realm, its provinces, etc., on behalf of the monarch. All very Chinese and indeed very Confucian, reminding us of some of the things we saw in China years ago. No mention of Homer or Dante or Shakespeare. But very old, as these things go.
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Entrance |
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Good signage throughout, in Vietnamese, French, and English (too) |
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Click to enlarge and be enlightened |
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And beautiful landscaping too |
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One passes through a series of buildings, gates, courtyards, reflecting the various stages of learning |
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I particularly liked the bit about the humanities... |
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Near the end, a small forest of stelae, on which are inscribed the names of those who passed the rigorous exams |
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Thus; click to enlarge |
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Apparently they had no notion of students' privacy |
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In the final big courtyard; the Court of Sages (I liked that) |
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Much Chinese bonsai around; penjing it's called, and these are very large specimens |
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Confucius (?) |
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Roof detail |
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Tree always wins over stone |
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In the final hall, an interesting set of traditional musical instruments, perhaps between performances |
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Helpful model of the complex |
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Drum house |
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