Vietnam's stelae declared Unesco World Heritage Site

Hanoi, March 11: The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) has declared the 82 stelae of the Temple of Literature in Vietnam as a World Heritage Site, Prensa Latina reported.

The Temple of Literature, located in a park in central Hanoi, was founded by emperor Ly Thanh Tong in 1070. It is dedicated to Confucius.

Vietnam's first university was established in the complex in 1076 to train the administrative and defence staff.

It has 82 stelae mounted on top of giant tortoises that line on the side of the temple. They date from 1484 and record names, birthplaces and achievements of the men who received doctorates here.

Names of 2,313 students graduated from the institution between 1484 and 1780, during the Late Le, Mac, Trinh and Nguyen dynasties, were sculpted in the stones.

Although the complex has undergone many changes over the centuries, the architecture of the site belong to the Ly (1010-1225) and Tran (1225-1400) dynasties, a recent study has showed.

The Unesco recognition was approved recently in Macau, the report said Wednesday.