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Published: July 16th 2008
On to Xi'an, which served as China's capital to 11 dynasties over a period of 4,000 years. Best know for the Terracotta warriors, it's position at the very Eastern end of the Silk Road turned it into a busy metropolis and merchant town.
During my stay I visit the magnificent Drum and Bell towers, (present in all of the major, ancient Chinese cities) and watch performances on both instruments, cycle around the top of the city walls - a 14km round trip, at 9m high, giving great views of the city - and of course, visit the Terracotta Army.
Not discovered until 1974 when some peasants digging a well came across pieces of broken clay [ottery, the site is actually located 28km outside of Xi'an. It was believed to be the burial mound of emporer Qin Shi Huangdi, first in the Qin dynasty, who unified China for the first time over 2,200 years ago.
The three pits at the site contain over 7,000 soldiers, many of which have still to be excavated.
Surprisingly, the warriors were all originally fully painted and armed, but exposure to the air has meant the paint has eroded. When the local archaeologists
discover a way to stop this erosion taking place, they'll excavate the remaining soldiers.
It was a very special moment for me just staning in the huge room, seeing all the warriors below me, each one was individually carved and has different features from every other. Shi Huangdi must have been an incredibly vain man, needing that many soldiers to see him into his after-life...
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Terracotta Warriors
