![]() Sima Qian wrote that the first emperor was buried with palaces, towers, officials, valuable artifacts and wondrous objects. Geographer Li Daoyuan, writing six centuries after the first emperor's death, recorded in Shui Jing Zhu that Mount Li was a favoured location due to its auspicious geology: "famed for its jade mines, its northern side was rich in gold, and its southern side rich in beautiful jade the first emperor, covetous of its fine reputation, therefore chose to be buried there". Work on the mausoleum began in 246 BCE, soon after Emperor Qin (then aged 13) succeeded his father as King of Qin, and the project eventually involved 700,000 conscripted workers. The construction of the tomb was described by historian Sima Qian (145–90 BCE) in Records of the Grand Historian, the first of China's 24 dynastic histories, written a century after the mausoleum's completion. The central tomb itself has yet to be excavated. ![]() History The mound where the tomb is located Plan of the Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum and location of the Terracotta Army ( ). Other, non-military terracotta figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians. Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army hold more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remain in situ in the pits near Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses. The figures vary in height according to their rank, the tallest being the generals. The figures, dating from approximately the late 200s BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong County, outside Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting him in his afterlife. The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |