Liaoyang Confucius Temple

　　Confucius Temple The Confucius Temple is located in Confucius Square on East Avenue, Wensheng District, Liaoyang City. Originally built in the 15th year of the Hongwu reign during the Ming Dynasty (1382), it features a rigorous layout. Structures such as the screen wall, Lingxing Gate, Pan Pond, Jimen (Pole Gate), Dacheng Hall, and Qisheng Shrine are all aligned along the same central north-south axis. The temple is divided into three courtyards: The first courtyard features a screen wall at the front, with stone steles inscribed in both Manchu and Chinese on either side indicating the "Dismounting Steles." The screen wall faces a memorial archway-style Lingxing Gate, which is enclosed by walls with wing gates on the eastern and western corners. The second courtyard has a Pan Pond at the front. Crossing the Pan Pond Bridge leads to the five-bay Jimen (Pole Gate), which is built with grey tiles and a flush gable roof. A central corridor runs through it, with the Eastern Loyal Piety Shrine and the Western Chastity Shrine located on either side, enshrining revered scholars and teachers. The third courtyard houses the main structure, the five-bay Dacheng Hall, which features a double-eave hip-and-gable roof, upturned eaves, grey tiles, and red pillars. At the center of the hall is the statue of Confucius, the Supreme Sage. To the east are statues of Yan Hui (Revered Sage) and Zisi (Sage Successor); to the west are Zeng Shen (Explanatory Sage) and Mencius (Second Sage). Statues of Confucius’s virtuous disciples are placed in the pavilions on both sides, while the side halls enshrine 116 ancient Confucian scholars.

　　Behind the Dacheng Hall is an earthen mound with the Chongsheng Shrine, which enshrines the five generations of Confucius’s ancestors. The temple also includes an incense pavilion, scripture tower, stele tower, and several plaques inscribed with calligraphy by Qing emperors. In 1900, during the invasion by Tsarist Russia, the temple was looted and left empty. Although it was partially restored in 1934, it was later destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. The site has now been converted into Confucius Square.