Jiangnan Imperial Examination Hall

Nanjing


The north section (北馆; ¥40) of this extensive subterranean museum, marked by the stunning reflection pool on Gongyuan Jie, has contemporary displays on imperial China's civil-service examinations and their modern-day equivalent, the gāokǎo (national college entrance examinations). Above ground, don't miss the reconstructions of the buildings where scholars once spent months – or years – in tiny booths preparing for the exacting examinations.

Across the street, the much-smaller South Hall (南馆; ¥25) has some old photographs and ceramic artefacts on display.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Nanjing attractions

1. Fūzǐ Miào

0.08 MILES

In the south of the city in a smartened-up pedestrian zone full of restaurants, the Confucian temple Fūzǐ Miào has been a centre of Confucian study for…

2. Zhan Garden

0.32 MILES

If you don't have time to get to Suzhou, visit this delightful Ming-dynasty garden complex that once housed Taiping officials. The on-site Taiping History…

3. Taiping Heavenly Kingdom History Museum

0.33 MILES

Hong Xiuquan, the Hakka leader of the quasi-Christian Taiping, had a palace built in Nanjing (then named Tianjing or 'Heavenly Capital'), but the building…

4. Zhonghua Gate

0.75 MILES

Fourteenth-century Zhonghua Gate has four rows of gates, making it almost impregnable, and could house a garrison of 3000 soldiers in vaults in the front…

5. Presidential Palace

1.54 MILES

After the Taiping took over Nanjing, they built the Mansion of the Heavenly King (天王府, Tiānwáng Fǔ) on the foundations of a former Ming-dynasty palace…

6. Wuchaomen Park

1.99 MILES

Peaceful but maudlin Wuchaomen Park is home to the Ming Palace Ruins, and usually filled with locals practising ballroom dancing while saxophonists,…

7. Ming Palace Ruins

2 MILES

Built by Zhu Yuanzhang in the 14th century, the imperial palace was reportedly a magnificent structure that served as a template for Beijing's Forbidden…

8. Nanjing University

2.39 MILES

This delightfully historic campus is worth a stroll to appreciate its traditional architecture, lovely trees and green spaces.