The Terracotta Army are the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shi Huang,the First Emperor of China. The terracotta figures, dating from 210 BC, were discovered in 1974 by some local farmers near Xi'an, Shaanxi province, China near the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor.
Evaluation & Importance of Terracotta Warriors
Political leaders, celebrities and scholars who have visited the site of the Terracotta Warriors all considered it as a great archeological discovery in human history and worth one of the eight wonders in the world. The site is ranked high besides the Pyramids in Egypt and ancient sculptures in Greece; they are all the invaluable treasures of our world.
Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum Figures
The terracotta figures are life-like and life-sized. They vary in height, uniform and hairstyle in accordance with rank. The colored lacquer finish, individual facial features, and actual weapons and armor from battle used in manufacturing these figures created a realistic appearance.
The figures vary in height (183–195 cm - 6 ft–6 ft 5in), according to their role, the tallest being the generals. The figures include strong warriors, chariots, horses, officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians. Current estimates are that in the three pits containing the Terracotta Army there were over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which are still buried in the pits.
Their existence serves as a testament to the amount of labor and skill involved in their construction. It also reveals the power the First Emperor possessed, enabling him to command such a monumental undertaking as this.
Four Pits of Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum
Pit one, 230 meters long, contains the main army, estimated at 8,000 figures. Pit One has 11 corridors, most of which are over 3 meters wide, and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of noblemen and would have resembled palace hallways. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil making them, when built, about 2 to 3 meters higher than ground level.
Pit two has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots, and is thought to represent a military guard.
Pit three is the command post, with high ranking officers and a war chariot.
Pit four is empty, seemingly left unfinished by its builders.
The four pits associated with the dig are about 1.5 km east of the burial ground and are about 7 meters deep. The outside walls of the tomb complex are as if placed there to protect the tomb from the east, where all the conquered states lay. They are solidly built with rammed earth walls and ground layers as hard as concrete.
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