Terracotta Warriors

I can’t do anything other than make this sound like a brief history lesson but I promise to try and keep it brief! Around 50km outside of Xi’an city the year before I was born, 1984, a farmer who was making a well stumbled across one of the most important archaeological findings in history – he had found the Terracotta Warriors. Built by the first emperor of the Qin dynasty who unified China, the warriors were made to protect the emperor after death as he believed that he would still rule in the after life (some people!!). The warriors, which each is believed to be totally unique, are life sized statues of soldiers from all ranks and divisions. The tomb is estimated to cover an area of around 50km square and they are buried around 7 metres underground. After the emperor’s death the tomb was raided by the army of General Xiang Yu, the warriors were smashed and the underground complex was burnt and buried – only to be found around 2000 years later. Ok, so don’t go checking any of the key facts but I think that’s vaguely right – well, ok I may have been about 10 years out on my year of birth but other than that! The sight of the warriors lined up in trenches is mad and you can’t help but be impressed by it. The time taken to create such an army seems crazy but not as painstaking and as long as it will to excavate them! In one pit alone it is estimated that 6,000 warriors are buried with only a small portion of them actually excavated and repaired. The detail in each is amazing, from facial expressions to the armour and even down to dimples on soles of their Nike trainers – joke!! What makes someone go to such lengths is mind blowing, 40 years and 70,000 workers to build. The lonely planet says that some people come away feeling disappointed – some people are just idiots and should have the privilage and freedom of travel bestowed upon them instantly removed!!