May
28, morning
Terra Cotta Warriors
5/28
- Today is the sightseeing
highpoint of the trip--the Terra Cotta Warriors of Emporer Ch`in's army. We drove for 45 minutes or so
northeast of Xi`an to an impressive complex filled with cars and tour buses. We engaged a private guide who was knowledgeable, but
rushed us a bit. She did answer all my questions and was willing to divert from her planned scheme when
requested.
We
started with the Museum, which includes the masterpiece, 1/2 scale bronze chariots and many other
pieces. 
In the
foreground are my guides Zhang Yafei (Victoria) and Zhang Yihao (Ross).
The museum featured restored statues of chariots and their horses in
glass enclosures. 
After the museum, we proceed to Pit #1: 200m long, covered and filled, containing a remarkable,
restored, full sized army--warriors to guard the Emperor's tomb several kilometers to the
east. 
At one end, the restored soldiers are in place, aligned in rows of four separated by earthen columns to
hold up the roof. Further back, the soldiers are left covered to protect their brilliant colors
until technology finds someway to prevent the near instantanious (three day) deterioration
upon exposure to air. A walkway proceeds around the periphery of
the pit and
leads us to some eye-level
warriors on display for viewing and photographs. Included are some
splendid horses as well.
We walked over to Pit #2, which is
smaller and contains specialists, primarily archers, to protect the
flank of the main army.
Pit #3 is smaller still and served as a command center with ceremonial
guards and high-ranking
officers. All of the pits are well below ground.
Overall, the process took
Emporer Ch`in fourty years and 750,000 workers. An amazing feat for a
man who was also uniting an
empire, starting the Great Wall, and building a bureaucracy that would
last two thousand years. At
the gift shop, I bought a book containing photographs and background
information. It was individually
signed by the farmer who discovered the relics in the first place.