Golden Tablet and Yuan Tablet

Golden Tablet and Yuan Tablet

The Golden Tablet and Yuan Tablet are Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units of Henan Province.

The Golden Tablet and Yuan Tablet of Dengzhou City, namely the “Great Jin Dynasty Dengzhou Establishment of the Confucius Temple Stele” and the “Great Yuan Dynasty Renovation of the Confucius Temple Stele,” were built during the Jin and Yuan dynasties. They stand separately on the west and east sides of the main entrance of Dengzhou No. 1 Urban Primary School. This site was originally the location of the former Confucius Temple. Later, stele pavilions were constructed to protect them. They are designated as Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units of Henan Province.

The Great Jin Dynasty Dengzhou Establishment of the Confucius Temple Stele is located at the entrance of Dengzhou No. 1 Urban Primary School. It stands 4.52 meters tall and is 1.20 meters wide, consisting of three parts: the stele head is 0.90 meters high,

the main body of the stele is 3.02 meters tall, and the base is 0.60 meters tall. The stele head is semicircular, with the seal script “Great Jin Dynasty Dengzhou Establishment of the Confucius Temple Stele” in the center, decorated with a pattern of two dragons playing with a pearl, and rests on a turtle-shaped base. The inscription is written vertically in running script, composed and inscribed by Hanlin Academician Zhao Bingwen, and erected in April of the seventh year of the Zhengda era (1230) during the reign of Emperor Aizong of Jin. The inscription is mostly legible and was originally housed inside the Dengzhou Confucius Temple, which was located near Baihua Zhou and was later destroyed in war.

The Great Yuan Dynasty Renovation of the Confucius Temple Stele is located at the entrance of Dengzhou No. 1 Urban Primary School. It stands 4.17 meters tall and is 1.20 meters wide. It consists of three parts: the stele head is 0.90 meters high,

the main body of the stele is 2.67 meters tall, and the base is 0.60 meters tall. The stele head features seal script reading “Great Yuan Dynasty Renovation of the Confucius Temple Stele.” The main text is written vertically in regular script, and the base is turtle-shaped. It was erected in July of the second year of the Zhiyuan era (1342) during the reign of Emperor Shundi of the Yuan Dynasty. It was composed by Nanyang scholar Wang Rui, inscribed by Luoyang scholar Yang Yuan, and the stele head was sealed in seal script by Nanyang scholar Li Heng.

In June 1963, it was designated as a Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the former People's Government of Henan Province.

Further Reading:

· First Batch of Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units of Henan Province