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Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Anonymous
The Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang never did things in halves. Not satisfied with building the Great Wall, he spent his final years roaming the fringes of his kingdom seeking an elixir for immortality. And when he ironically died during his quest, his body was returned to the capital near Xi'an and buried in a massive underground, city sized mausoleum.
Thus wrote the historian Sima Qian, almost a century after Qin Shi Huang's grandson was overthrown and the Han dynasty was established in 206 BC. Nobody knew how authentic the account was until some peasants digging a well found Qin Shi Huang's guardians in the afterlife: three massive rectangular vault containing more than ten thousand life sized terracotta warriors in battle formation.
The Terracotta Army is renowned for its shockingly human attributes and features; each of the artifacts is different - from the hairstyles, facial expression, postures and clothing. The individualism is such that you can't help but feel they are real people who got fossilized by some natural disaster. This is especially true in places where the excavations are incomplete; giving the impressions that the earth is gripping on to their half buried busts. Even the horses are so finely sculpted that archaeologists have been able to identify every single breed.
At the end of it, there is just one lingering question, will they excavate a life sized statue of Qin Shi Huang who is leading the ten thousand warriors.
If you are planning to visit the monument, the best bet would be to search for online bus tickets from the city center. There are also numerous agencies that do bus ticket booking to the spot.
Thus wrote the historian Sima Qian, almost a century after Qin Shi Huang's grandson was overthrown and the Han dynasty was established in 206 BC. Nobody knew how authentic the account was until some peasants digging a well found Qin Shi Huang's guardians in the afterlife: three massive rectangular vault containing more than ten thousand life sized terracotta warriors in battle formation.
The Terracotta Army is renowned for its shockingly human attributes and features; each of the artifacts is different - from the hairstyles, facial expression, postures and clothing. The individualism is such that you can't help but feel they are real people who got fossilized by some natural disaster. This is especially true in places where the excavations are incomplete; giving the impressions that the earth is gripping on to their half buried busts. Even the horses are so finely sculpted that archaeologists have been able to identify every single breed.
At the end of it, there is just one lingering question, will they excavate a life sized statue of Qin Shi Huang who is leading the ten thousand warriors.
If you are planning to visit the monument, the best bet would be to search for online bus tickets from the city center. There are also numerous agencies that do bus ticket booking to the spot.
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