Tainan Confucius Temple

The Tainan Confucius Temple is the most majestic Confucius temple in Taiwan. It was built in 1665, during the Ming Dynasty. Its solemn and splendid architecture has earned the temple the classification of Level One National Cultural Relic. Indeed, the temple was the location of the highest official institute of higher learning in Taiwan. As the Taiwan Palace of "Confucianism Study", it owned the incompatible position of culture and education and was called "The Highest Institute".

The temple has been through more than 30 times of reconstruction, as part of the building was destroyed during the wars or ruined by natural disasters. The present scale of the temple was the result of reconstruction in 1917.

Still recognizable is the calligraphic inscription appearing on a wooden banner hung high above the facade of the temple's entrance. This contrasts with the red tiles and classic scrolled-awning architectural design. Despite having endured the test of time and weathering, set amid the tree-lined canopies and the midday blue skies, the design still boasts a majestic air.

The temple has largely been preserved to its traditional scale, with study halls to the left and the temple halls to the right. The center of the temple's main hall houses Confucius memorial tablets, while the main hall's east and west wings are for other historical elites and scholars. The main hall's architecture and furnishings are kept to a rustic simplicity, yet the majestic architecture and the solemn ambiance have come to depict what best represents the very essence of Confucius' teaching.

On September 28th of every year, the Teachers' Day, Confucius memorial ceremonies are staged here at the temple and conducted according to ancient rituals.