Hall of Literary Brilliance | |
---|---|
文華殿 | |
| |
Alternative names | Hall of Literary Glory, Hall of Literary Flourishing, Wenhua Hall |
General information | |
Type | Hall |
Town or city | Forbidden City |
Coordinates | 39°54′56″N 116°23′58″E / 39.915552319038056°N 116.39935458109551°E |
The Hall of Literary Brilliance ( simplified Chinese: 文华殿; traditional Chinese: 文華殿; pinyin: Wénhuá diàn), or the Hall of Literary Glory or Wenhua Hall, is a hall in the outer court of the Forbidden City, located far east of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. [1] In the early Ming Dynasty, the hall was originally used as the residence of the heir apparent. [2] However, starting in 1536, Ming emperors began to use the building as a secondary hall. [1] During both the Ming and Qing Dynasty, the hall hosted grand imperial lectures on Confucian classics and served as a place for the emperor to meet his scholars and officials. [1] [2] The hall was also where palace examinations papers would be reviewed and marked by nine readers who would be sequestered in the hall for two days. [3] The hall gave its name to one of the seven different titles of grand secretary in late-imperial China. Becoming Grand Secretary of Wenhua Hall was considered to be an especially prestigious honour for high-ranking mandarins. [1]
From 2008 to 2017, the hall served as the location of the Palace Museum's ceramics gallery before it was moved to the Hall of Martial Valor. [4]