Time: Saturday, ngày 01 tháng 11, 2025 – Sunday, ngày 30 tháng 11, 2025
Place: Temple of Literature – National University
The event is organized under the patronage of the Hanoi People’s Committee, in coordination with the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports, with the support of UNESCO and SOVICO Group. The exhibition runs from November 1st to November 30th, 2025.
The exhibition presents to the public rare documentary photographs by French photographer Firmin-André Salles (1860–1929), recording the 1897 Dinh Dau imperial examination in Nam Dinh (formerly).
Precious archival images by photographer Firmin-André Salles of the 1897 Hương examination in Nam Định are being displayed for the first time in a unique bamboo architectural space, a highlight of Photo Hanoi ’25. The exhibition space, inspired by the ancient examination hall itself, invites viewers to step into ‘an imaginary examination hall’ to admire Vietnam’s educational heritage.
The exhibition takes viewers back to a special historical context, when Vietnam’s traditional Confucian examination system was entering its final stages. The 1897 Hương examination in Nam Định, a merger of the Hanoi and Nam Định examination centers, attracted over 10,000 candidates, although only 80 passed.
Using the then-advanced “dry-plate” technique, Salles’ photographs boast exceptional sharpness and detail. These works are now valuable documents preserved at the French National Library and the French National Geographic Society.
The exhibition also reflects a turning point in Vietnamese education, when French and the Vietnamese Quốc ngữ script began to be included in examinations, marking the decline of Confucianism and ushering in a period of education modeled after Western practices.
One of the most striking highlights of the exhibition is its display space. Inspired by the “architecture of ancient examination halls,” the architects from Kecho Collective created a unique structure. This design aims to transport viewers into “an imaginary examination hall,” where “each step is a journey back.”
The event was attended by many important delegates, affirming the significance of the exhibition in connecting cultural heritage.
The examination typically consisted of three or four rounds (called the three-stage or four-stage), with content ranging from classical texts (the Four Books and Five Classics), imperial decrees and edicts (administrative documents), poetry, and essays (discussions on political affairs). Only a select few outstanding candidates were awarded the title of Bachelor – a necessary condition to proceed to the Imperial Examination in the capital. The imperial examinations at that time were not only a path to academic achievement but also an important political and social institution, reflecting the ideals of the scholarly class – where learning and morality were valued more highly than lineage or social standing.
This also serves as a means of upholding fairness and integrity within the state apparatus, in line with the spirit that “only genuine intellect deserves respect.” The examinations are organized solemnly, becoming major events that attract the attention of the entire society.
Source: Vietnam.vn
