Confucianism: Images, Symbols, and Sacred Places
This gallery presents Confucian images and objects selected for study and comparison. Use the images to consider teachers, texts, ritual, education, ethics, and social order.
These images are selected for study and comparison. Look closely at the source, rights note, caption, and category for each image before drawing conclusions.
Life of Confucius
Life of Confucius is a candidate image from The Metropolitan Museum of Art found with the curated search term ‘Confucius’. It is relevant to Confucianism because it fits the page category: Confucius image/statue, Temple of Confucius, ritual tablet/altar, classical text, scholar culture, or education context. It would help World Religions students connect a specific object, site, or practice with the tradition.
Caution: Confucianism crosses categories of ethics, education, ritual, philosophy, and religion.
Portrait of Confucius
Portrait of Confucius is a candidate image from The Metropolitan Museum of Art found with the curated search term ‘Confucius’. It is relevant to Confucianism because it fits the page category: Confucius image/statue, Temple of Confucius, ritual tablet/altar, classical text, scholar culture, or education context. It would help World Religions students connect a specific object, site, or practice with the tradition.
Caution: Confucianism crosses categories of ethics, education, ritual, philosophy, and religion.
Yan Family Temple Stele
This image shows Yan Family Temple Stele. It connects to Confucianism through temple/stele/ritual memory, linking moral cultivation with ritual memory, education, and social order. Students can use it to discuss why Confucianism crosses categories of philosophy, ethics, ritual, and religion.
Caution: Confucianism crosses categories of ethics, education, ritual, philosophy, and religion.
Rubbing of Stele for Shi Chen
This image shows Rubbing of Stele for Shi Chen. It connects to Confucianism through temple/stele/ritual memory, linking moral cultivation with ritual memory, education, and social order. Students can use it to discuss why Confucianism crosses categories of philosophy, ethics, ritual, and religion.
Caution: Confucianism crosses categories of ethics, education, ritual, philosophy, and religion.
Questions for Looking Closely
- What specific details in the image connect it to this tradition?
- What source information helps you interpret the image responsibly?
- How does this image complicate a simple or stereotyped understanding of the tradition?
- What comparison could you make with another image on this page?