The Terracotta Warriors...

Up early again, we breakfasted and checked out of our hotel, to head towards the place we were really looking forward to...The Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin, the First Emperor who unified China.

It was about an hour’s drive, and the day was dawning very hot again.

Our first stop was to meet Mr Yang, one of the farmers whose well-digging on their farm in 1974 discovered Pit #1, finding a terracotta head when he fell through the hole.

They lost their farm when the officials took it over, with no compensation, and their families struggled, until in the 1990’s, Bill Clinton came to visit, and wanted to meet one of the farmers who found such an amazing discovery. The government realised that Mr Yang’s house was not suitable for a visit from such an important man, and gave Mr Yang all sorts of things to improve his home. Bill Clinton met Mr Yang, and shook his hand. After that Mr Yang became a bit of a celebrity, and now has a job at the site. We could shake his hand, and if we bought a book from him, he would sign his name and place his “chop” in the book, and let us take a photo with him like Bill Clinton...so, of course we did.

Then we decided (or at least our guide Phoenix did) to go in the opposite direction to the holds...we would starts in the museum housing the bronze horses and charioteers that were found near Emperor Qin’s tomb (a large mound that has not yet been breached, due to stories that it is booby trapped, and his coffin floats on a river of Mercury. They have determined that the Mercury levels of that area are indeed very high, but they have not yet found a way to breach the tomb...

We then entered Pit #2 - this pit has not been fully excavated yet...and there are many discoveries still to be made. The only intact warrior found, was the kneeling archer, pictured here. All the other warriors have been reconstructed, because after then end of the Qin Dynasty, the tombs were entered and the warriors smashed. There were no records of them so no one knew they were there until Mr Yang fell through a hole in 1974.

The site is really amazing, and eagerly, we headed for Pit #1 - the first Pit to be found.Read more