| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | Lintong District, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China |
| Criteria | Cultural: i, iii, iv, vi |
| Reference | 441 |
| Inscription | 1987 (11th Session) |
| Website | bmy.com.cn |
| Coordinates | 34°23′06″N 109°16′23″E / 34.38500°N 109.27306°E |
  Location of Terracotta Army in China | |
| Terracotta Army | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 兵马俑 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 兵馬俑 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Soldier and horse tomb-figurines | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The Terracotta Army 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 with the purpose of protecting him in his afterlife.
The figures, dating from approximately the late 200s BCE,[1] were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong County, outside Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. The figures vary in height according to their rank, the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses. 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.[2] Other, non-military terracotta figures have since been found in other pits, including those of officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians.[3]
- ^ Lu Yanchou; Zhang Jingzhao; Xie Jun; Wang Xueli (1988). "TL dating of pottery sherds and baked soil from the Xian Terracotta Army Site, Shaanxi Province, China". International Journal of Radiation Applications and Instrumentation, Part D. 14 (1–2): 283–286. doi:10.1016/1359-0189(88)90077-5.
- ^ Portal 2007, p. 167.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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