This was orig­i­nal­ly the tem­ple where the emper­ors and oth­er mem­bers of the roy­al fam­i­ly would pay respect to their ances­tors. The build­ings are orig­i­nal, though much of the inte­ri­or, includ­ing the ances­tral tablets, were destroyed dur­ing the Cul­tur­al Rev­o­lu­tion. It has since been repur­posed as a muse­um ded­i­cat­ed to the work­ing class Chi­nese.