[2025 Hancheng Attraction] Travel Guide for Hancheng Confucian Temple (Updated Mar)

There are more than 1,740 Confucian temples in China. Why is the Han Cheng Confucian Temple in Shaanxi Province the third largest Confucian temple in China? 💡Highlight 1: The Han Cheng Confucian Temple was built in the Tang Dynasty and is the most well-preserved ancient Confucian temple in Shaanxi Province. 💡Highlight 2: The temple is mainly composed of Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasty buildings, and combines the architectural styles of different dynasties. The exquisite glass wall with five dragons, the ancient cypress trees, and the red walls and green tiles create a solemn, simple, and elegant atmosphere. 💡Highlight 3: The Dacheng Hall, a Yuan Dynasty building, is one of the typical representatives of Yuan Dynasty architecture in Han Cheng. The "Master of All Ages" plaque inside the hall is also from the Qing Dynasty. 💡Highlight 4: Among the ancient trees in the courtyard, the most eye-catching is a 1,500-year-old cypress tree with five branches pointing to the sky, symbolizing "five sons passing the imperial examination." Because of these ancient trees, locals believe that the Han Cheng Confucian Temple was not built in the Tang Dynasty, but earlier in the Sui Dynasty. 💡Highlight 5: The main exhibition hall of the Han Cheng Museum is also located in the east and west wing rooms of the courtyard. It is said that building a museum in a Confucian temple is a pioneering move in Shaanxi Province.

The Confucius Temple was built in the Yuan Dynasty and the existing scale was formed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It is the most complete group of ancient Confucius Temple buildings preserved in Shaanxi Province since the 14th century. When you enter the Confucius Temple, you will first be attracted by a magnificent five-dragon wall. The wall uses the technique of relief, and the five giant dragons shuttle through it, as if they are going to rush out of the wall and leap into the sky. Opposite the wall is the Lingxing Gate, which is made of wood as a whole, and is full of magnificence in the solemnity. Behind it is the tall and solemn Ji Gate, the magnificent Dacheng Hall, the strict and spacious Minglun Hall, and the towering Zunjing Pavilion. The Confucius Temple is a place to worship Confucius and promote Confucian culture. The front temple and the back school practice Confucius's thoughts of emphasizing education and promoting literature. Its establishment itself reflects the respect for human nature that Confucianism has for people with self-consciousness. 🌿The architectural complex of the Confucius Temple is divided into four courtyards, from south to north, they are the glazed five-dragon wall, Lingxing Gate, Pan Pool, Ji Gate, Dacheng Hall, Minglun Hall, Zunjing Pavilion, etc., forming a north-south axis of 200 meters long. Lingxing Gate is the main gate of the Confucius Temple. The gate is a Xuan Mountain style, composed of three wooden archways, with five heavy arches, supplemented by seven, five, and three flowers, decorated with dragons, phoenixes, immortals, lions, horses, flowers, etc. The pillars go straight to the outside of the house, commonly known as the sky pillar. The top is decorated with glazed panlong, flower sleeves and treasure gourds. 🌿The architectural complex of the Confucius Temple is divided into four courtyards: 1⃣From Lingxing Gate to Ji Gate is the first courtyard. The ancient cypresses in the courtyard are towering. It is said that these cypresses were planted in the Yuan and Qing Dynasties. There is a Pan Pool in the courtyard, with a double-hole stone bridge in the middle, and the pool is surrounded by stone railings. There are symmetrical east and west houses in the courtyard. The east side is the "Dressing Pavilion" and the west side is the "Zhi Zhai Pavilion". There are also six pavilions recording the reconstruction of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. 2⃣The second courtyard is composed of Ji Gate to Dacheng Hall. Dacheng Hall is the main building of the Confucius Temple and the most magnificent in scale. It is located on the central axis. The entire temple base is a high platform made of stone. The base of the platform is a moon platform, surrounded by stone railings, and carved with panlong patterns. Dacheng Hall is three rooms wide and five rooms wide, four rooms deep, and a tube tile hip roof. On both sides of the main hall are east and west corridors, each with thirteen rooms. 3⃣The third courtyard is composed of Minglun Hall. Minglun Hall was built in the fourth year of Ming Hongwu. The hall has five rooms, and there are east and west "stele forests", "wine masters", and "library masters" on both sides. The four-character plaque of "Teacher's Dignity" is hung in the middle above. 4⃣The fourth courtyard is composed of Zunjing Pavilion. Zunjing Pavilion is a place for storing scriptures. The platform is 3.5 meters high and surrounded by flower walls. It is a double-eave hip roof. There are wing rooms on the east and west sides.

Many posts about the Hancheng Confucian Temple, including Baidu Baike, claim that it is the 'third largest Confucian temple in the country', only after the Imperial College in Beijing and the Confucius Temple in Qufu. This title is indeed prestigious, but I haven't found any confirmation elsewhere, and based on my experience, this statement seems a bit exaggerated. However, there is no doubt that the Hancheng Confucian Temple is the most intact Confucian temple existing in Shaanxi, and calling it 'the first in Shaanxi' is not a big problem. The Hancheng Confucian Temple currently has four courtyards and twenty-two buildings, combining the styles of the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties in one temple. The central axis from south to north is sequentially distributed with the screen wall, Lingxing Gate, Pan Pool, Ji Gate, Dacheng Hall, Minglun Hall, and Zunjing Pavilion. The buildings are mostly decorated with glazed tiles, flying eaves and arches, colorful paintings, and relief sculptures, which are dazzling to behold. The main hall, Dacheng Hall, is five bays wide and three bays deep, with a clear and well-structured interior. The structure and the columns of the corridor are fitted with large plaques, reducing two eave columns, commonly known as 'three in light and five in shadow', a traditional construction method that uses both traditional and large plaque structures, which is a typical architectural style of the Yuan dynasty. The Hancheng Confucian Temple, together with the Dongying Temple and the City God Temple, form the Hancheng City Museum. The three temples together make up the most exquisite part of the ancient city, and one ticket allows entry to all three temples. For ancient architecture enthusiasts, visiting the three temples is enough for an afternoon. Location: Dongxue Alley, Old City, Hancheng City, Weinan, Shaanxi Province Ticket: Adult ticket 50 RMB/person, 10% off on holidays, free for special groups Opening hours: 08:00-18:00, no reservation needed

Hancheng Confucian Temple is the most intact Confucian temple in Shaanxi and the third largest in the country. Its scale is second only to the Confucian Temple in Qufu, Shandong, and the Confucian Temple on Guozijian Street in Beijing. The ancient trees in the temple, which are over 1000 years old, also tell the history of this ancient city... The temple protects the ancient city and the well-being of its people... Hancheng Confucian Temple is a group of well-preserved Yuan Dynasty buildings. According to the records in the 'Ming Yitongzhi': 'Hancheng County School was rebuilt on the original site in the fourth year of Hongwu (1371 AD)'. Hancheng Confucian Temple is one of the more representative ancient building complexes in Shaanxi Province since the 13th century and is a key cultural relic protection unit in the province. Not far from the gate of the temple, there are two archways to the east and west, one named 'Xian Guan' and the other 'Sheng Cheng'. The archways are inscribed with 'De Guan Gu Jin' (Virtue Crowned Through the Ages) and 'De Pei Tian Di' (Virtue Matched with Heaven and Earth) respectively. Passing through these two gates to enter the temple, to the south stands a glazed dragon relief wall, which is 17 meters long and 4.2 meters high, with exquisitely carved and vividly shaped dragons that seem to soar out of the water. This was built during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty. On both sides of the Five Dragons Wall, there are brick carvings of carps playing in the waves, which together resemble the 'Dragon Fish River Map'. To the east and west of the Five Dragons Wall is the 'Ling Xing Gate', with dragon and phoenix motifs on both sides. The temple complex is divided into four courtyards, with ancient cypresses reaching to the sky. The Dacheng Hall is the main building of the temple, with a grand scale. The Minglun Hall to the north was used for teaching, instructing, and giving lectures in the past. The 'Zun Jing Ge' on the high platform to the north is where the temple's scriptures were kept. From the pavilion, one can see the entire county. The total construction area of Hancheng Confucian Temple is more than 8,000 square meters, with a wide courtyard and a standard layout, reflecting the simple, solemn, and majestic style of China's national traditional architecture. Hancheng City Museum is located within the Hancheng Confucian Temple, with nearly 10,000 cultural relics in its collection. 1. Address: East end of Xue Alley, Hancheng Ancient City 2. Transportation: It takes 2.5 hours to drive from Xi'an. From Hancheng City, take bus 101/102/103 to reach the ancient city scenic area, then walk for about ten minutes to reach the Confucian Temple. 3. Hancheng Confucian Temple is connected with Dongying Temple and Chenghuang Temple, forming a line from south to north, with a full-price ticket of 50 yuan per piece. There are preferential policies for special groups. to go on weekends buildings