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Terra Cotta Warriors Museum
About 35 kilometers
east to the Xian City in Lin Tong County is the Mausoleum
of the First Qin Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, which was included
in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage in 1987. Being
a part of the Mausoleum, the Terra Cotta Warriors Museum
was also included in the list, which stands about 1.5
kilometers east to the Mausoleum. |
Some pieces of the broken terra cotta warriors were found
by several local peasants in 1974 when they were digging
for a well. This is how the 14,260-square meters pit of
the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses was found. It pit
was soon proved to be a funeral pit buried for the first
Qin Emperor, Qin Shi Huang over 2,200 years ago, which
makes it one of the most important archaeological excavations
of 20th century. Later two more pits were found. All of
them cover an area of over 20,000 square meters.
So far there are over 8, 000 full-sized warriors and horses
and more than 100 chariots been excavated. All of the
terra cotta warriors were lively made, and from their
hair styles, clothes and gestures, it is easy to tell
their identities and duties, generals, officers, cavalry
or infantry. There were also over 100, 000 bronze weapons
unearthed, which after more than 2,000 years are still
sharp and shining, which showed that people had known
the metallurgical technology well in the ancient time.
In the Terra Cotta Warriors Museum, there are two sets
of bronze chariots and horses on exhibition, which were
excavated to the west of the Mausoleum and are so far
the biggest ones unearthed in China. Because of the limited
technology today, most of the excavated warriors and horses
have been buried under earth again for better protection
and at present there are only 1,000 warriors and horses
on exhibition. |
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Admission Fee:
 90.00
(from March to November); 65.00
(from December to February)
Opening
Hours:
everyday from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm (from March 16 to November
14); from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm (from November 15 to Mar
15)
Public Transportation:
Bus No. 306 from the railway station goes directly to
the Museum every day and the ticket is 5.00
per person. The bus operates from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm.
Tips:
The mini-bus at the railway station claiming to be the
same as the Bus No. 306 only leaves when it is fully seated,
which is not recommended.
Taking pictures inside the Museum is acceptable but flashlight
is not allowed to use.
Shopping for souvenir in the stores near the Museum is
not recommended, which will cost
you greatly higher than shopping in the city.
It is necessary to have a guide for the Bronze Chariots
and Horses Hall, where little written information is available
for the precious bronzes.
Some guides will suggest the Qin Mausoleum, which is an
unexcavated artificial site at present, is not recommended.
The official website of Terra Cotta Warriors Museum: http://www.bmy.com.cn/index_eng.htm
The downloadable .gif file for the name of the Museum
written in Chinese pinyin and characters:
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