Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh Temple

The Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh Temple, also known as Bình Kính đình (communal house), is located in Trấn Biên ward, Đồng Nai city, Vietnam. It is a historical site that was officially recognised by the State on 25 March 1991. Here, the people of Biên Hòa worship Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh, a founding national hero who made great contributions to the country in expanding and consolidating the southern borders of the Fatherland.

The đình (communal house) was built around the late 18th century, that is, after the death of Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh (1700). Previously, the site was a solemn 'martial shrine' and received attention from the Nguyễn dynasty kings. When Gia Long ascended the throne, he had it restored, assigned 10 workers to look after it, and every year allocated funds for ceremonial offerings on the anniversary of Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh's death. In 1851, under the Tự Đức reign, 100 quan coins were granted for relocation and repairs, and from 1923 to 1960, it was repeatedly reconstructed. The interior architecture of the site is still preserved, with large rows of columns and many grand horizontal lacquered boards with inscriptions. Especially notable are the incense tables and altars, featuring lively folk-themed carvings. The temple also preserves a set of ceremonial robes and hats, said by tradition to have belonged to the lord himself during his lifetime.

The front of the temple faces the Đồng Nai River to the southwest, with a spacious courtyard. The temple's façade is adorned with a pair of dragons flanking the law, made of green-glazed ceramics, and on either side are a pair of qilin. The row of columns at the front entrance is decorated with dragons winding through clouds, and there are couplets in Chinese characters carved in relief into the wall.

In 1998, the Đồng Nai Party Committee and people built a stele house within the grounds of the Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh Temple to record the 300-year history of the Biên Hòa and Đồng Nai region. On the 16th of May and the 11th of January in the lunar calendar each year, local people hold ceremonial offerings to pray for national peace and prosperity, and to commemorate the great merits of the forebear who pioneered land reclamation and established the administrative foundations of the southern region.