RadioRoryThe word terracotta immediately makes me think of flower pots or Chia pets.
The army of terracotta warriors that was and is being unearthed in Xi’an is remarkable. The statues were buried with China’s first emperor more than 2,000-years ago and are part of a huge complex that was built by 700,000 workers. The terracotta army was accidentally discovered by farmers digging a well in 1974. The slow task of excavating the site and piecing together the damaged statues continues and experts believe there is much more to discover. The mausoleum of Emperor Qin is a couple of miles away and remains buried under a 200-foot-tall mound that’s roughly the shape of pyramid. There’s wild speculation about the other relics that are buried with him.
Xi’an and 300 other cities in China have populations over one-million people. I’m going to say that again. There are 301 cities in China with populations of more than one-million people. Xi’an has almost five-million and was once a major stop on the Silk Road, so there’s tons of history and some great architecture. We took the bullet train 750-miles from Beijing to reach Xi’an. The trip took about five-hours and was completely comfortable at 185-miles-an-hour, even in the train’s cheap seats.
This is when your cell phone camera fails you.
Sure, you can get a selfie with distant clay soldiers, but you’ll miss the detail. And it’s all about the detail.
In the main hangar, parts of the ceiling are opaque, which allows for the light to change and highlight some of the 8,000 soldiers, 500 horses, and 150 chariots.
The statues were painted, but it didn’t last. Some lacquer curled up and fell off minutes after the soldiers were unearthed. That’s one reason scholars are reluctant to enter the emperor’s tomb. They are concerned that air/sunlight could similarly damage what’s inside. There are also accounts suggesting that lots of mercury was used in Qin’s tomb for decoration, making it a dangerous place for anyone to enter today.
You may notice that many of the statues are missing the hands that once held real spears, bows, and swords. Apparently, the area was looted soon after the army’s creation and other weapons may have been lost to decay. There is a great explanation here.
The Chinese government has allowed some of the artifacts to go on display at museums around the world. Meanwhile, the preservation effort continues. Today, restoration experts go to work every day realizing that they will never see this project finished. Their kids probably won’t see it finished either.
It’s remarkable that the name of a well-educated historian trying to save these fragile warriors will be lost to the ages while the face of a 2,000-year-old slave is preserved forever.