Anxi Confucius Temple (Anxi County Museum)

Anxi Confucius Temple (Anxi County Museum)

The Anxi Confucius Temple (Anxi County Museum) is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit, a Classic Red Tourism Site, and a Patriotic Education Base.

The Anxi Confucius Temple was first built in the fourth year of the Xianping era during the Northern Song Dynasty (1001), and is a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit. Its current layout was reconstructed during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty. The main structures are arranged along a north-south central axis, symmetrically on both sides, and from the outside in include the Pan Palace, the “Soaring Dragon” and “Rising Phoenix” stone archways, the Pan Pond, the screen wall, the Lingxing Gate, the Jimen Gate, the side corridors, the Dacheng Hall, the Chongsheng Hall, the Education Office, and more. It stretches 164 meters from north to south and 36.5 meters from east to west, and with the addition of the Minglun Hall, the total floor area reaches 5,986 square meters. The entire architectural complex is logically laid out, well-structured, grand in scale, and exquisite in craftsmanship. It has long been praised as “the most elegant in the south of the Yangtze” and “the finest in Fujian,” and its architectural style was once introduced to Japan, serving as an important example of cultural and technological exchange between China and Japan.

The former site of the Anxi County Central Committee of the CPC Military-Political Cadre Training Class, the Anxi Confucius Temple, is located on the east side of Datong Road in Fengcheng Town, Anxi County, Quanzhou City.

During the Anti-Japanese War, Jimei Middle School relocated to Anxi and operated on the grounds of the Anxi Confucius Temple. The Party organization established the Jimei School Branch of the CPC here and carried out party activities. On May 10, 1949, after the liberation of Anxi County, the Anxi County Central Committee of the CPC decided to establish a Military-Political Cadre Training Class to train military and political cadres. On May 14, the first session of the training class commenced at the Anxi Confucius Temple. The class was overseen by Cai Zhongming, Ding Lianzheng, and Wang Ping. Over 90 student party members, league members, and progressive youths from various areas gathered here for study and military training. Later, due to changing circumstances, the training class was relocated to Fuchun in Changkeng, Anxi County, where it continued.

The building complex of the former site of the Anxi County Central Committee of the CPC Military-Political Cadre Training Class, the Anxi Confucius Temple, covers a construction area of 9,495 square meters, with a protected area of 15,000 square meters. It was first built in the fourth year of the Xianping era of the Song Dynasty (1001) and relocated to its current site in the twelfth year of the Shaoxing era (1142). The existing structures were rebuilt in the early Qing Dynasty. The overall structure follows a palatial architectural style, magnificent and resplendent.

The Anxi County Museum was established in April 1988, sharing office space with the Anxi County Cultural Relics Management Committee Office, which was also formed that same year. The Anxi Confucius Temple has since been designated as the museum’s site.

In September 2014, it was recognized as a Quanzhou Social Science Popularization Base for 2014–2016;

In May 2013, the Anxi County Museum was announced by the State Council as a National Third-Class Museum;

In August 2014, it successfully passed the operational evaluation for National Third-Class Museums for the year 2013.

The former site of the Anxi County Central Committee of the CPC Military-Political Cadre Training Class, the Anxi Confucius Temple, was announced by the State Council in June 2006 as part of the sixth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units. In May 1997, it was designated by the Quanzhou Municipal Committee of the CPC and the Quanzhou Municipal People's Government as part of the second batch of Quanzhou Patriotic Education Bases.

Confucius (551–479 BCE), whose personal name was Qiu and courtesy name Zhongni, was a native of Zouyi (present-day southeastern Qufu, Shandong Province) in the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn period. He was a philosopher, educator, and statesman of the late Spring and Autumn period, the founder of Confucianism, and one of the most influential figures in Chinese history and culture. He also had a significant impact worldwide, especially in Southeast Asian countries, and is recognized as one of the world’s cultural luminaries.

Confucius’s ancestors were Weizi Qi, the half-brother of King Zhou of the Shang Dynasty, who presided over the worship of the Shang and was enfeoffed in the State of Song. His sixth-generation ancestor, Kong Fu Jia, was the first to adopt the surname Kong. His fifth-generation ancestor, Mu Jin Fu, fled to Lu to escape turmoil and later settled in Zouyi, the State of Lu… More detailed information about Confucius ++

Further reading:

· China’s National Third-Class Museums

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units