In 1974 some humble farmers, while digging a well, unearthed an unusual piece of clay - little did they know it was going to be one of the most important and biggest archaeological finds in the world. Excavation revealed nearly 8,000 life-sized terracotta warriors and horses, made to guard the tomb of the first emperor (Qin Shihuangdi) and protect him in the after life. Even more incredible was the fact that no two warrior faces were made the same and they were found holding weapons and lined up facing east in battle array. It is estimated that some 720,000 workers were involved in this undertaking that lasted several decades until the emperor died in 210 BC.

Now that you’d had a quick history lesson let me just say that this place is absolutely incredible and if you ever come to China this is a must see.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 22nd, 2006 at 6:14 pm and is filed under Lifestyle & Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.