Army of the Terra-cotta Warriors

"Army of the Terra-cotta Warriors"

Stumbled upon by peasants digging a well in 1974, the 2,000-year-old army of Terra-cotta warriors is a fascinating record of artistic achievement and a grandiose expression of imperial power.

We were both so excited to see the terra-cotta warriors after hearing we were going to Xi'an. For those who may not have heard of them, the Terra-cotta warriors are 2,000-year-old life-size clay warriors built to protect the tomb of a Chinese emperor. They were discovered fairly recently in 1974, by a farmer digging a well. My favorite part about them is that each warrior represents an individual man and each have a unique face. The tallest warrior stands over 6 feet, and all were equipped with still-sharp bronze weapons- swords, spears, and crossbows.

Before we went to the actual site we made a pit stop at a factory that showed exactly how the Terra-cotta warriors were made. They had a basic mold they would use for the warriors, and generals. Then they would add individual touches to each mold. They did a bunch of other really intricate stuff but it was mostly yawn-worthy. :) we ended up getting a hand-made general. The guy was trying to get me to buy two because he said it would be lonely because it only knows Chinese. So I said we'd buy just one and say ni hao to it every day.

The site of the terra-cotta warriors was an open farmland but has since been turned into an outdoor mall with food places and shops. There are 4 pits that contain the soldiers. The first pit we went to, pit 1, is where the main army stands. 6,000 of the 8,000 soldiers and horses are there. The rows of figures are seperated by walls roughly 8 feet wide. Towards the back of the vault there is a pile of collapsed warriors with smashed heads that archaeologists are trying to reassemble like a huge jigsaw puzzle. Pit 2 is a vault of chariots, cavalry and infantrymen. Pit 3 is relatively unexcavated. It contains 68 soldiers and a war chariot. The figures appear to be high-ranking officials because of their more elaborate costumes. Our favorite pit was number 1. It is the most awe-inspiring, especially with the rows upon rows of 2,000-year-old clay warriors. We spent the day wandering the sites and learning about the discovery. Tonight we are off on a 16 hour sleeper train to Shanghai!

Zai-jian!

David and Kristen