Imperial College

The Guozijian, the Beijing Imperial Academy, was from 1306 the highest school of the Chinese empire, training the mandarins who administered it. For six centuries the top candidates of the nationwide civil-service examinations completed their final training here before being sent to the provinces. The central Biyong Pavilion, a circular hall on a square island of water, was built in 1784 under Emperor Qianlong and is one of the most refined demonstrations of Confucian cosmology in stone. Adjacent stands the Confucius Temple with its 190-plus stelae, into which the names of every successful examination candidate of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties are carved. Today the academy is a quiet museum in a Beijing hutong lane.