Terra Cotta Warriors
Men Building Terra Cotta Army
World's Largest Marrionetts (Beijing Olympics 2008)
Scary
Pictures of Excavation
Unexcavated Pit
Meeting Room
The next day we rose early to join the hostel's trip to see the Terra Cotta Army just outside of Xi'an. We'd heard a lot about it and had some to Xi'an specifically to see the site. Once there, the magnitude of the site and the stories behind its creation were further impressed upon us. The emperor who created this mausoleum truly believe that he would continue to rule China after his death and would therefore need an army to serve him. He went to such detail that he even refused to put too many generals in once room for fear that too many highly powered officials in one room together would lead to a coup. One aspect of the site that we found particularly amusing was a man sitting behind a desk in the front room of one of the exhibits with a sign bearing his name and the explanation, "the farmer who discovered the Terra Cotta Army." We wondered aloud if he regretted his find now destined to sit at a desk all day in a museum on display, day after day. Or perhaps he was rewarded handsomely, and was happy just to sit after a life of toil in the fields. Or perhaps they put a new man there every day and no one was the wiser.
After four hours touring the site, we were thoroughly chilled and happy to board the bus back to the hostel.
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