The Terracotta Army or the "Terracotta Warriors and Horses" is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife.
Terracotta Warriors
The figures, dating from approximately the late third century BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong District,Xi'an, Shaanxi province. The figures vary in height according to their roles, with the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses. Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army held more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remained buried in the pits nearby Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum. Other terracotta non-military figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians.
Pits
View of Pit 1, the largest excavation pit of the Terracotta Army
Four main pits approximately 7 metres (23 ft) deep have been excavated.[22][23] These are located approximately 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) east of the burial mound. The soldiers within were laid out as if to protect the tomb from the east, where all the Qin Emperor's conquered states lay.
Pit one
Pit one, which is 230 metres (750 ft) long and 62 metres (203 ft) wide,[24] contains the main army of more than 6,000 figures.[25] Pit one has 11 corridors, most of which are more than 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of nobles and would have resembled palace hallways when built. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil raising them about 2 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) above the surrounding ground level when completed.[26]
Others
Pit two has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots and is thought to represent a military guard. Pit three is the command post, with high-ranking officers and a war chariot. Pit four is empty, perhaps left unfinished by its builders.
Some of the figures in pit one and two show fire damage, while remains of burnt ceiling rafters have also been found.[27] These, together with the missing weapons, have been taken as evidence of the reported looting by Xiang Yu and the subsequent burning of the site, which is thought to have caused the roof to collapse and crush the army figures below. The terracotta figures currently on display have been restored from the fragments.
Other pits that formed the necropolis also have been excavated.[28] These pits lie within and outside the walls surrounding the tomb mound. They variously contain bronze carriages, terracotta figures of entertainers such as acrobats and strongmen, officials, stone armour suits, burials sites of horses, rare animals and labourers, as well as bronze cranes and ducks set in an underground park.[29]
Warrior figures
Construction
The terracotta army figures were manufactured in workshops by government laborers and local craftsmen using local materials. Heads, arms, legs, and torsos were created separately and then assembled.[30] Eight face moulds were most likely used, with clay added after assembly to provide individual facial features.[31] It is believed that the warriors' legs were made in much the same way that terracotta drainage pipes were manufactured at the time. This would classify the process as assembly line production, with specific parts manufactured and assembled after being fired, as opposed to crafting one solid piece and subsequently firing it. In those times of tight imperial control, each workshop was required to inscribe its name on items produced to ensure quality control. This has aided modern historians in verifying which workshops were commandeered to make tiles and other mundane items for the terracotta army. Upon completion, the terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank and duty.
Stone armor suit on display in the National Geographic Museum, USA.
The terracotta figures are life-sized. They vary in height, uniform, and hairstyle in accordance with rank. Originally, the figures were also painted with bright pigments, variously coloured pink, red, green, blue, black, brown, white and lilac.[32][33] The coloured lacquer finish and individual facial features would have given the figures a realistic feel. However, much of the colour coating had flaked off or become greatly faded.
There is speculation of a possible Hellenistic link to these sculptures, due to the lack of life-sized and realistic sculptures prior to the Qin dynasty according to some scholars.[34][35]
Weaponry
Most of the figures originally held real weapons such as spears, swords, or crossbows, and the use of actual weapons would have increased the figures' realism. Most of the original weapons, however, were looted shortly after the creation of the army, or have rotted away. Nevertheless, many weapons such as swords, spears, battle-axes, scimitars, shields, crossbows, and arrowheads were found in the pits.[22][36] Some of these weapons, such as the swords are sharp and were coated with a 10–15 micrometre layer of chromium dioxide that kept the swords rust-free for 2,000 years.[37][38][39] The swords contain an alloy of copper, tin, and other elements including nickel, magnesium, and cobalt.[40] Some carry inscriptions that date manufacture between 245 and 228 BCE, indicating they were used as weapons before their burials.[41]
An important element of the army is the chariot, of which four types were found. In battle the fighting chariots formed pairs at the head of a unit of infantry. The principal weapon of the charioteers was the ge or dagger-axe, an L-shaped bronze blade mounted on a long shaft used for sweeping and hooking at the enemy. Infantrymen also carried ge on shorter shafts, ji or halberds and spears and lances. For close fighting and defence, both charioteers and infantrymen carried double-edged straight swords. The archers carried crossbows, with sophisticated trigger mechanisms, capable of shooting arrows farther than 800 metres (2,600 ft).[41]
Pits
View of Pit 1, the largest excavation pit of the Terracotta Army
Four main pits approximately 7 metres (23 ft) deep have been excavated.[22][23] These are located approximately 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) east of the burial mound. The soldiers within were laid out as if to protect the tomb from the east, where all the Qin Emperor's conquered states lay.
Pit one
Pit one, which is 230 metres (750 ft) long and 62 metres (203 ft) wide,[24] contains the main army of more than 6,000 figures.[25] Pit one has 11 corridors, most of which are more than 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of nobles and would have resembled palace hallways when built. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil raising them about 2 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) above the surrounding ground level when completed.[26]
Others
Pit two has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots and is thought to represent a military guard. Pit three is the command post, with high-ranking officers and a war chariot. Pit four is empty, perhaps left unfinished by its builders.
Some of the figures in pit one and two show fire damage, while remains of burnt ceiling rafters have also been found.[27] These, together with the missing weapons, have been taken as evidence of the reported looting by Xiang Yu and the subsequent burning of the site, which is thought to have caused the roof to collapse and crush the army figures below. The terracotta figures currently on display have been restored from the fragments.
Other pits that formed the necropolis also have been excavated.[28] These pits lie within and outside the walls surrounding the tomb mound. They variously contain bronze carriages, terracotta figures of entertainers such as acrobats and strongmen, officials, stone armour suits, burials sites of horses, rare animals and labourers, as well as bronze cranes and ducks set in an underground park.[29]
Warrior figures
Construction
The terracotta army figures were manufactured in workshops by government laborers and local craftsmen using local materials. Heads, arms, legs, and torsos were created separately and then assembled.[30] Eight face moulds were most likely used, with clay added after assembly to provide individual facial features.[31] It is believed that the warriors' legs were made in much the same way that terracotta drainage pipes were manufactured at the time. This would classify the process as assembly line production, with specific parts manufactured and assembled after being fired, as opposed to crafting one solid piece and subsequently firing it. In those times of tight imperial control, each workshop was required to inscribe its name on items produced to ensure quality control. This has aided modern historians in verifying which workshops were commandeered to make tiles and other mundane items for the terracotta army. Upon completion, the terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank and duty.
Stone armor suit on display in the National Geographic Museum, USA.
The terracotta figures are life-sized. They vary in height, uniform, and hairstyle in accordance with rank. Originally, the figures were also painted with bright pigments, variously coloured pink, red, green, blue, black, brown, white and lilac.[32][33] The coloured lacquer finish and individual facial features would have given the figures a realistic feel. However, much of the colour coating had flaked off or become greatly faded.
There is speculation of a possible Hellenistic link to these sculptures, due to the lack of life-sized and realistic sculptures prior to the Qin dynasty according to some scholars.[34][35]
Weaponry
Most of the figures originally held real weapons such as spears, swords, or crossbows, and the use of actual weapons would have increased the figures' realism. Most of the original weapons, however, were looted shortly after the creation of the army, or have rotted away. Nevertheless, many weapons such as swords, spears, battle-axes, scimitars, shields, crossbows, and arrowheads were found in the pits.[22][36] Some of these weapons, such as the swords are sharp and were coated with a 10–15 micrometre layer of chromium dioxide that kept the swords rust-free for 2,000 years.[37][38][39] The swords contain an alloy of copper, tin, and other elements including nickel, magnesium, and cobalt.[40] Some carry inscriptions that date manufacture between 245 and 228 BCE, indicating they were used as weapons before their burials.[41]
An important element of the army is the chariot, of which four types were found. In battle the fighting chariots formed pairs at the head of a unit of infantry. The principal weapon of the charioteers was the ge or dagger-axe, an L-shaped bronze blade mounted on a long shaft used for sweeping and hooking at the enemy. Infantrymen also carried ge on shorter shafts, ji or halberds and spears and lances. For close fighting and defence, both charioteers and infantrymen carried double-edged straight swords. The archers carried crossbows, with sophisticated trigger mechanisms, capable of shooting arrows farther than 800 metres (2,600 ft).[41]
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