Or the Chinese civil service exam that consisted of reciting (IIRC) the Book of Songs, the Confucian Analects, and a few other things, from memory.
Yeah, basically the “5 classics” and whatever else they felt was important at the time. Not necessarily reciting, though. Often it was being locked in a box for an extended period, expected to transcribe whole passages perfectly from memory.
ETA: Wikipedia link
Or the Chinese civil service exam that consisted of reciting (IIRC) the Book of Songs, the Confucian Analects, and a few other things, from memory.
Yeah, basically the “5 classics” and whatever else they felt was important at the time. Not necessarily reciting, though. Often it was being locked in a box for an extended period, expected to transcribe whole passages perfectly from memory.
ETA: Wikipedia link