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Stone
steles in Hà Nội’s stone steles are considered a stone history book |
The decision was made in
the annual plenary of the UNESCO's Memory of the World in Macau, China,
on March 9.
So far, the doctoral laureate
steles were Việt Nam’s
second items honored as the world documentary heritage, after the wood-blocks
of the Nguyễn Dynasty.
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The Temple of Literature (Văn Miếu-Quốc Tử Giám), located in the
heart of Hà Nội City, has been for long considered a symbol of the
civilization and intelligence of Việt Nam.
Founded in the 11th century as a temple dedicated to
Confucius and then the country’s first university, Văn Miếu-Quốc Tử Giám was
the biggest educational center where thousands of eminent scholars were
trained.
Its campus houses a garden of 82 stone steles honoring all doctoral
laureates of the royal examinations held between the 15th and 18th
centuries.
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The stone steles in the Temple
of Literature are
accurate historical documentation of royal examinations between 1442 and 1779.
Their inscriptions provide many valuable historical details of Việt Nam’s traditional
education for 300 years.
Second, each inscription highlights feudal dynasties’ viewpoints and
philosophy of national construction and protection, cultural preservation,
education development, nurturing and using talented people.
Third, the steles provide many details of the biographies of thousands
of Vietnamese celebrities.
Fourth, the Chinese characters, carved on the steles, are evidences for
the development of the Chinese script in Việt Nam.
Fifth, each stele is a work of art bearing different styles.
By Hồng Hạnh