The famous Terracotta Warriors

In March of 1974, a farmer in a village near Xi'an, China decided to dig a well during a drought. He enlisted the help of his five brothers, and a few days later the well reached 15 meters (49 feet) deep. That was when they discovered a terracotta head and a bronze arrowhead.

The farmer informed authorities, and an archeological team was dispatched.

It turned out that the farmer's well was just the edge of a massive, previously untouched underground vault. The vault was part of the tomb of China's first emperor.

Entrance to the exhibits.

We paid 120 yuan ($25 CAD, $17.70 USD) per person for the tickets. We bought them one day in advance using the trip.com app and we booked entrance in the 2:30pm to 3:30pm time slot because later in the afternoon is supposed to be the least busy time.

The site museum.

There are three pits. Pit 1 is the main military pit, containing 3,000 warriors, horses, and chariots. Pit 2 is known as the tactical unit, while pit 3 is the officers directing operations.

Everything was built at the direction of the emperor to protect him in the afterlife because he was of the opinion that he would continue ruling after his death. The terracotta warriors were built, then buried, with the intention that they would never be seen again.

And for 2,200 years they were not seen.

But we can see them now!

When they were made, they would have all been painted.

Crowds on the viewing platform.

But the paint flaked off within hours of being unearthed.

Some soldiers face the sides in case of attack that way.

The size is massive!

Each face has a different expression.

Even the horses are quite realistic.

Not all of them survived 2,200 years!

Trying to put the pieces back together.

I don't think I would have the patience to be an archeologist.

Each box has the puzzle pieces they think will complete the puzzle.

Pit 3 is much less visually stunning.

There would have been a chariot in this display originally.

And, you'll notice that most of the warriors hands look like they should be holding something. And originally, the warriors were holding real life weapons, but anything that was made of wood didn't survive 2,200 years.

They have a couple of the better survivors on display.

An imprint left in the mud of a chariot wheel.

Pit 2 has some high tech archeological devices where they are attempting to preserve the original paint on freshly excavated statues.

Some of the different ways the statues are dressed. 

Even the hairstyle is different for different ranks.

This is what they think the original clothing would have looked like.

They also dug up two bronze chariots that are in a different museum nearby, and we didn't make it there. They have a replica on display outside...

Replica bronze statue of four horses and a chariot.

Really interesting stuff. However I would recommend that future visitors go to visit pits 2 and 3 before pit 1. Because if you see pit 1 first, you will be disappointed by pits 2 and 3, as we were. 

They say that most visitors will spend four hours here, but after two hours, we were done. Crowds like that wear on me pretty quickly, and we've learned over the years that we're not really museum people... you can only look at so much broken pottery! Still, we're glad we went to see this. To think that nobody knew it existed until 1974 is quite amazing. 

And, the tomb of the emperor himself is as yet unexplored. Historical texts claim the tomb contains rivers of liquid mercury, and modern soil surveys support that because they show unusually high mercury concentrations in the area. Also, an ancient historian recorded that the tomb was rigged with mechanical crossbows designed to fire arrows at intruders. While some mechanisms might have decayed, the possible hazard remains. Ultimately, Chinese archaeological policy strictly follows "rescue excavation," meaning sites are only opened if they are in imminent danger from construction or looters. Since the tomb is secure, deep underground, and relatively safe, the policy is to preserve it intact.

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