The Examination Hall of Provincial Education Commissioners

　　Era: Qing Dynasty

　　Address: Hailing District, Taizhou City, Jiangsu Province

　　Originally the Embroidered Uniform Guard (Duchayuan) of the Ming Dynasty, after the Kangxi era of the Qing Dynasty, it became the site where candidates from eight counties and cities under Yangzhou Prefecture took the imperial examinations to become xiucai (junior scholars). The hall historically featured a complete architectural structure and grand scale, including buildings such as the front gate, ceremonial gate, main hall, Sibu Hall, East Tower, West Tower, upper rooms, lower rooms, examination sheds, and the Temple of the God of Fortune.

　　After enduring centuries of weathering, today only the front gate and Sibu Hall remain well-preserved among the main structures. The front gate is five bays wide and two bays deep, using a divided central槽 construction method. The front eaves feature bracket sets with double ang, while the rear eaves have double upward-curving brackets. The central ridge has intercalary bracket arms, and below the single-step beam is a crossed lotus-petal-shaped bracket arm with a one-dou-three-sheng configuration; beneath the double-step beam is a partitioned bracket set with a one-dou-six-sheng configuration. The central beam frame on the main ridge features Qing-style colored paintings. The Sibu Hall is also five bays wide but four bays deep. Its front eaves have bracket sets with double ang, while the rear eaves have no brackets. The middle bay uses a post-and-lintel construction with a layered three-part system. Below the main ridge beam of the hall hangs a large blue-background, gold-character plaque inscribed with “Four Teachings Hall,” written by Cao Xiuguang, the educational commissioner, in the early summer of the Bingxu year during the Qianlong reign. Under the ridge purlin is an inscription reading: “Reconstructed in the third month of the year Xinyou, the 17th year of the Guangxu reign, by Zhang Zhaolu, acting prefect of Taizhou with the rank of prefectural magistrate.” The overall presence of the Sibu Hall is majestic and solemn. The main ridge purlin is 9.75 meters high, the ordinary purlin is wider than the architrave, and the architrave is fitted with diagonal bracket sets. The maple brackets are carved with hidden Eight Immortals motifs, the columns rest on inverted-basin stone plinths, representing the highest level of official architecture in Taizhou since the early Qing Dynasty.

　　From May 2005 to early 2006, the Taizhou Municipal Government invested approximately 15 million yuan and referred to the Yangzhou Prefecture Examination Hall diagram in the Continued Compilation of the Taizhou Annals to carry out restoration and reconstruction. In August 2008, it officially opened to the public as the Taizhou Imperial Examination Museum, showcasing the procedures and evolution of the imperial examination system.