Xi'An: Home to The Terracotta Army (Part 1)

This was my second visit to the Terracotta Warriors and Horses (兵马俑, bīngmǎyǒng). It involved waiting in an extremely long line for the bus and being jostled and shoved in the exhibit. But it was still worth it. There's just something intangibly amazing about them.

For those unfamiliar with the Terracotta Warriors, this pottery army was built in the late third century BC to be buried with Emperor Qin Shihuang, the first emperor of a unified China. He started work on the the site before he had even unified the country. It is estimated that there are more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 4 horses each, and 150 cavalry horses, but most of them are still buried. The soldiers are life-sized, have various uniforms and hairstyles according to rank, stand in battle formation, and most of them originally held real weapons. They were also painted in colors that are now faded or absent. Perhaps most fascinatingly, each soldier has a unique face.

I had forgotten that their discovery was so recent, only found in 1974 when farmers were digging a well and found pottery shards. Four large pits have been excavated: three ongoing, one empty, suggesting that the emperor had planned an even larger array than was accomplished by his death. Here are views of pit number one.

Pit Number 1, as viewed from the entrance.

And from the other side.

You can still make out some of these horses' coloring.

Pit number one is also the site of ongoing reconstruction work.

Don't they look like they're standing at the starting gate, ready to be off and running?

Reconstruction the warriors: fascinating or tedious? Probably both.

Looking back at the entrance. Apparently there are over 2 million visitors a year.
It felt like an unreasonable number of them were there when I was.

 

Xi'An: Capital of the Tang Dynasty

Just outside of the city of Xi'An is a palace built in 723 by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (replacing earlier palaces built during previous dynasties). 

The palace makes use of local hot springs and features multiple bathing pools. Apparently, the palace is interesting historically because it sheds some light on royal bathing culture. It is most famous, however, for being the setting of a great Chinese love story. Yang Guifei was married to one of Emperor Xuanzong's sons, but soon caught the emperor's attention. She soon became his most favored concubine. Unfortunately, subsequent political unrest was blamed on her  (sometimes directly, sometimes for distracting the emperor from more important matters), and she was later put to death.

"Crabapple pool", supposedly in the shape of a crabapple flower, the pool was built in 747 especially for Yang Guifei.

"Star pool", extending further to the left, is supposed to be shaped like the big dipper.

The grounds of the palace are quite pretty.

It's a story that captivates many people, drawing crowds to the site.

The emperor and his concubine.

The palace is also important in modern history for being the site of the Xi'An incident in 1936, during which Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Nationalists, was kidnapped from the palace. Subsequent negotiations led to a truce in the Chinese Civil War so as to unite against the Japanese invasion.

Xi'An: Capital of Shaanxi Province

Have you ever wondered what the difference between Shanxi and Shaanxi is? I have. And I finally figured it out. It's a difference of tone. The first is said with a high, flat tone, while the second is said with a dipping tone that first lowers and then rises. Xi'An is the capital of Shaanxi province and as such, is the home of the Shaanxi History Museum, which is filled with interesting artifacts from all over the Shaanxi, including the following.

Human-shaped and animal-shaped masks.
13th-11th century BC.

Decorative tiles for the eaves of roofs.

A sneak peak at the terracotta warriors...more of them soon!

And their horses, of course.

Another terracotta figure from the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC), excavated from Qin Shihuang's mausoleum. 

Painted pottery figures from the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 8 AD) excavated from funerary pits.
More than 3,000 warriors and horses were found.

An elaborately horned golden animal, labeled as a "monster", although it seems altogether too cute.

Pretty strange, even as mythical creatures go.

A unicorn from the Northern Wei Period (386-584).

The Chinese gargoyle equivalent?

I loved all the camel representations. Here's a tri-colored one, a style associated with the Tang Dynasty.

Tri-colored horse from the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Gold coin with Arabic lettering from the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Gold coin from the Eastern Roman Empire, dated 621.

A Chinese representation of a foreigner.
It reminds me unfortunately of a garden gnome.

"Painted Pottery Figure of Foreign Civil Officer" (664)

Another tri-colored camel.

A different style of camel, but also from the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Painted honor guards of Prince Qinjian of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
There are more than 300 pieces and over 70 distinct types.

The full assemblage.

From the Zhongshan Grottoes.