Terra Cotta Warriors, Xi'an, China

Jane, Suzanne and me
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We did not get Thanksgiving day off from school so we planned to make the most of our weekend. Four of us traveled to Xi'an, China, about a two hour flight from Hong Kong. It was time to take a look at the amazing archaeology site of the terracotta army of Qin Shihuangdi, the First Emperor of China. We arrived Friday night and checked into the Sofitel Hotel on Renmin Square. Saturday morning we were up early, enjoyed the buffet breakfast, and met our driver and English speaking tour guide in the lobby.

most of the warriors were damaged during the rebellions after the emperor had died, I imagine it is like putting a puzzle together
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We drove out of the city of Xian to get to the archaeological site. The grounds were well organized, allowing tourists to get a good glimpse of the warriors. The terracotta army of the First Emperor was discovered by surprise in 1974 by farmers who were working together to dig a well. While digging, they found pottery fragments, bronze arrowheads and crossbows. The immense project, that archaeologists continue to uncover, is mind boggling. The Emperor's tomb site is located outside of the city of Xian and had been known for thousands of years from the Chinese written record and the tomb mound had long been visible above ground. The terra cotta army was a complete surprise because there was no written record of it. The whole tomb complex area is estimated to cover 50 sq. km and is considered the most important tomb site in China.

Why would someone need such an elaborate army to guard him in the afterlife?

time for a tea break
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King Zhen of Qin was born in 259 BC and became King of the state of Qin in 246 BC when he was only 13. By the time he was 38, he had taken the name Qin Shihuangdi or Great August First Emperor of Qin. From the time that he became King of the Qin state, he started the construction of his tomb complex. It is assumed that it was unfinished when he died suddenly in 210 BC because one of the terracotta pits was found empty. The terra cotta army is buried in four pits and seemed to be placed in a formation to guard the tomb from attack. The total number of warriors and horses is estimated at about 8,000. The warriors are life size sculptures that vary in costumes, hairstyles, hand positions and facial features. It is estimated that over a thousand people may have been involved in the making of the terracotta army. Many of the laborers probably died of overwork or were possibly buried with the terracotta warriors when they were complete. All the warriors originally carried life-size weapons which disappeared when the pits were looted and burned in the rebellions after the death of the First Emperor. The warriors were originally painted but the exposure to the air caused an immediate loss of color. They are trying new techniques now in the attempt to preserve some of the colors during the ongoing excavation. Why would someone need such an elaborate army to guard him in the afterlife? Why was there no written record of this immense project? How could this army be created on such a grand scale during that time period? Seeing this site just created more questions.

one of the many street vendors
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That night we headed back to the city center for dinner. We went to a recommended local Chinese restaurant. We got the recommendation from a young man on the plane who is from Xian and he was very enthusiastic about his home town and he was happy to make suggestions. The restaurant was an experience (did I mention that Chinese food is not one of my favorite Asian cuisines?). I can always get a good dish of Chinese stir-fried greens with garlic. The rest that we ordered, I could have done without. After dinner, we walked around the Muslim Market area to people watch and window shop. It was fascinating, so many people out and about selling their wares. Xian was once the capital of China. This city feels so much more "Chinese" than Hong Kong. We saw very few "westerners" in this area.

woman dressed to perform at the city wall
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Back to the hotel and up early again on Sunday. We took a taxi to the Xi'an City Wall. It's the most complete city wall that has survived in China. The existing wall was started by the Ming dynasty in 1370 (which was an enlargement of an earlier wall). The wall now stands 12 meters (40 feet) tall, 12-14 meters (40-46 feet) wide at the top and 15-18 meters (50-60 feet) thick at the bottom. It covers 13.7 kilometers (8.5 miles) in length with a deep moat surrounding it. We rented bikes up on the top and biked around the entire wall returning just in time to get back in the taxi and head to the airport. This was a quick weekend history trip that was well worth it.