Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor

秦始皇兵马俑博物馆
Qin(2) Shi(3) Huang(2) Bing(1) Ma(3) Yong(3) Buo(2) Wu(4) Guan(3)

骊山公路东行37公里
Li(2) Shan(1) Gong(1) Lu(4) Dong(1) Xing(2) San(1) Shi(2) Qi(1) Gong(1) Li(3) Bus:306(At Railway Station)

Peasants digged a well in 1974 ,which became the greatest archaeological find of the 20th century when they discovered fragments of a Terra Cotta Warrior. Excavation of the vault revealed thousands of warriors and their horses, an entire army designed follows its emperor into eternity.

The site is located 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) east of the Qin Mausoleum. The emperor's terra cotta army was found in three underground timber lined vaults. Pit 1 contained chariots and ranks of six thousand soldiers. Pit 2 held fourteen hundred figures of cavalrymen, horses and infantrymen, along with ninety wooden chariots. Pit 3 contained about seventy figures. Excavating them has been a massive undertaking. To date, more than a thousand warriors have been reassembled.

The Qin Terra Cotta Army Museum, a hangar-like building constructed over Pit 1, place of the original discovery in 1974 opened in 1979. Later in October 1994, Pit 2 opened to the public. Now the museum is a stunning display that every visitor to China should see.