Thirteen Stele Pavilions

　　...with five on the northern side, arranged in a staggered and uneven fashion in two rows. All thirteen stele pavilions are wooden structures, square in shape, double-eaved and octagonal, adorned with colorful brackets.

　　The Thirteen Stele Pavilions fully reflect Confucius’s status in feudal society, among which the Jin Dynasty stele pavilion is the earliest ancient structure in the Confucius Temple. Within the thirteen stele pavilions stand a total of 55 imperial steles from various dynasties including the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. There are two stele pavilions from the Jin Dynasty, built around the second to sixth year of the Mingchang era during a major renovation project, and they are the oldest existing structures in the Confucius Temple; two from the Yuan Dynasty, constructed in the sixth year of the Yuandade era and the fifth year of the Yuanyou era respectively; and nine from the Qing Dynasty, including five imperial stele pavilions and four stele pavilions for envoys sent to conduct sacrifices, built during the reigns of Emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong.