The riddle of the clay army. China's terracotta army How many terracotta warriors

A special stamp was put on each part, which showed which workshop made it. If a marriage came across, it was immediately clear who was to blame and who to punish. Considering the temper of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, most likely, the first defective part was the last for the master.

All this you can see with your own eyes if you visit this burial complex in the city of Xi'an.

Terracotta Soldier Weapons

Although the soldiers were made of clay, they were given the most real weapons in their hands. Unfortunately, few weapons survived. First, the burial complex was plundered several times. Secondly, the metal is preserved much worse than ceramics, and many objects have completely rotted.

But even a small amount of weapons has given scientists many reasons to wonder. For example, arrowheads made in different parts of China were nearly the same size. That is, already in the 3rd century BC. the Chinese introduced unification in the production of weapons. This is amazing.

Thanks to the Terracotta Army, we now have a very good idea of ​​how the soldiers of that time were equipped, what weapons they fought with, how they formed on the battlefield and what tactics they followed.

Where to see the Terracotta Army

Almost all the soldiers are found where they were excavated by archaeologists. The archaeological site is located 10 kilometers from the city of Siyan. It is a fairly large city with a population of 8.5 million. here from Russia you can, but only from Moscow. There are few tourists who choose Xi'an as the main travel destination, although there are many attractions in the city.

If desired, you can get here from to. You will cover the distance of 1200 kilometers in 6 hours. Some even try to look at the Terracotta Army “one day”, that is, arrive in the morning “speed car” and leave in the evening.

We do not recommend this method. The first high-speed train (pictured on the left) arrives from Beijing to Xi'an Station at 13-00, and the last one leaves at 18-00. You will have only 5 hours, and this will only be enough to look at the Terracotta Army with one eye.

In addition, it is an expensive way to travel, as a one-way ticket costs 500 (at the time of writing, May 2015). In both directions, it turns out about 1000 yuan per person.

Tickets for a regular train in a compartment are half the price, but you will spend 14 hours on the train one way, for a total of 28 hours. Such a waste of time is unacceptable for many tourists.

There is the most budgetary way - it is to buy seats on a regular train. If you are not afraid to sit in an uncomfortable chair for 14 hours, then such a ticket will cost you only 150 yuan one way.

We believe that it is worth flying to Xi'an as the main destination of the trip. The city is beautiful, you will not regret it. And look at the Terracotta Army slowly, and see the mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, and much more interesting things.

If you do not want to go to Xi'an, but really want to see the Terracotta Army, then there is a compromise solution. These clay soldiers can be viewed in the country's museums. They are on permanent display in Beijing at.

In the spring of 1974, in the Chinese province of Shangxi, the digging of a well on one of the land plots was suspended. A figure of an ancient warrior made of dark clay was discovered at a depth of 4–5 m. The accuracy and realism of even the smallest details of this find indicated its exceptional uniqueness. This is how the history of the most grandiose archaeological discovery of the 20th century, the terracotta army of Qin Shi Huang, began.

Excavations continued at the site of the discovery. They included several stages. And, as the work progressed, the place was surrounded by a covered pavilion to protect it from external destruction.
During the first 12-year period, it was possible to excavate another 6,000 similar clay statues and, along with them, also realistically executed horses. Over the next period (it lasted only a year) - 2000 more. Excavations continue to this day. Now, according to the results of a 40 - year period of archaeological work, the number of clay soldiers is more than 8000. They make up three multi - meter ranks and are located according to the military formation of the Qin dynasty. This building is part of the oldest tomb of the first emperor of the united China, Qin Shi Huang, who was obsessed with the idea of ​​his own immortality.

The history of the creation of the terracotta army

The beginning of the construction of the burial complex dates back to 247 BC. At that time, a young man took over the reins. The history of his reign is rather controversial. On the one hand, he managed to unite several warring states of ancient China, creating a new empire. But on the other hand, his conquests were distinguished by cruelty and bloodshed. Young Shi Huang from the first day of his reign began to build a tomb for himself. The theme of immortality worried him throughout his life, which prompted the creation of religious buildings. In addition to the grandiose tomb, he initiated the construction of the Great Wall of China.

Terracotta army today

Today the excavation site is surrounded by a huge museum complex with an area of ​​50 sq. M. It is one of the iconic and grandiose landmarks in China. To see the monumental structure with your own eyes, you need to get to the Qinling village, not far from Xi'an (about 30 km). It is easy to get here both by public transport and by your own car. Since the place is quite popular, it is always crowded here. Before buying a ticket, you will have to stand in many kilometers in front of the ticket office. However, all these inconveniences are compensated by the impressions of visiting the museum.

Video about the terracotta army in China

Take a video trip to China to the pavilions of the terracotta army.

The museum is a complex striking in its scale. It consists of three rooms - pavilions. In some of them, excavations continue to this day. Visitors to the museum are advised to start their tour from the third pavilion, where the destroyed exhibits are collected, and then - the rest, where the restoration work of the terracotta army has already been completed.

The famous clay soldiers of the Chinese Emperor Qin Shih Huang Di is one of the most intriguing mysteries for researchers.

In the III century BC. China, in the then - the Celestial Empire - ruled Ying Zheng who took a name for himself Shi huang di, translated meaning "the first emperor". Immediately after accession to the throne in 221 BC. (at a very young age) he decided to take care of his afterlife.

By his order, over 700 thousand slaves and convicts were driven to the nearest mountain Li-Shan to the capital. Having broken through the stone mass, they built a giant crypt with bronze walls in the mountain. In the middle there was a place for a sarcophagus. Under the vaults on the floor, they drew a map of the earth's surface, where seas and rivers spilled into mercury. The sky was depicted on the ceiling.

But the ruler could not go to the next world unaccompanied. In the Chinese other world, the table of rank had to be observed even more accurately than in life. The divine person of the emperor was to be guarded by numerous guards with weapons, horses, and war chariots. Thank God, to kill or bury the warriors of Shi-Huang Di after his death in 246 BC. did not, only molded their life-size copies from clay.

Centuries have passed. In the spring of 1974, residents of the Chinese province of Shaanxing on the outskirts of Xi'an were digging a well and stumbled upon a sinkhole. A tunnel was opened, which led to huge underground halls with clay sculptures.

The discovered army consists of more than seven thousand full-size statues of warriors and horses, which were buried in 210-209 BC. together with the Chinese ruler Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of feudal China. For the first time, he was able to unite seven separate states on the territory of the country under the rule of one ruler and founded a dynasty that ruled from 221 to 207 BC.

Historians believe that Qin was one of the most powerful and important rulers in Chinese history, but his tyranny and incredible brutality led to a massive peasant uprising soon after his death, which ended the dynasty. The terracotta army, buried together with its ruler, should probably have provided him with the opportunity to satisfy his domineering manners in the other world, just as he did during his lifetime. And although instead of living warriors, contrary to the usual tradition, their clay copies were buried together with the emperor, which is regarded by some specialists as a very progressive step, one should not forget that, in addition to the statues of warriors, together with Qin, according to various estimates, up to 70 thousand (!) Workers were buried together with their families, as well as about three thousand concubines. And these people, unlike the soldiers, were quite real.

An army of clay warriors rests in battle formation in parallel crypts 1.5 kilometers east of the tomb of the emperor himself. The latter, in turn, is located 33 km east of Xian, the modern administrative center of Shaanxi Province, one of the central provinces of China. The crypts, which have a depth of 4 to 8 meters, are now located on the territory of the corresponding museum. The first of them was opened to visitors back in 1979, and the entire museum became available only in 1994. To date, archaeologists have freed about 1,500 statues from the ground.

The fact that these are copies made from living people is confirmed not only by facial expressions, but also by anthropological features. They show a clear resemblance to the inhabitants of the central part of Shaanxi province: a wide forehead, a large mouth with thick lips, a short mustache ...

Thousands of artisans were invited to the court to "populate" the imperial burials with the clay army. The sculpted statues were fired in a kiln. After that, for several days they cooled down in a special room. Then they were painted, dressed in silk clothes, wooden arms were attached to them and weapons were attached. Wooden hands rotated freely in the shoulders - this made it easier to wield weapons in the afterlife battles.

All statues are hollow inside. The Qin Shi-huang-di masters painted them in accordance with the table of ranks. The soldiers are dressed in short robes and unadorned breast armor; their hair is tied in a knot, and they have windings and shoes with rectangular toes on their legs. The officers are wearing breastplate armor with jewelry, high hats, boots on their legs. Generals - in scaly armor with decorations and hats in the form of two birds. Riflemen - with bows and crossbows, in bibs and short robes.

Riders, riders, shooters with weapons in their hands seem to be alive. The one and a half meter horses froze in anticipation of a swift throw ... Despite the fact that the colors have faded greatly, the appearance of the figures testifies to the very high level of skill and talent of the ancient Chinese craftsmen. And there are about 6 thousand such statues!

Thousands of terracotta warriors restored by specialists and put on alert made up an amazing exposition, which has come to be called the “eighth wonder of the world”.

The figures of the warriors are real creations of art, as they were made individually, by hand and using various techniques. Each individual statue has its own unique features and even facial expressions. After giving the required shape, the statues were baked and covered with a special organic glaze, on top of which paint was applied. The presented warriors differ in rank (officers, ordinary soldiers), as well as in the type of weapon (spear, crossbow or sword).

In addition to clay statues, in 1980, two bronze chariots were discovered 20 meters from the emperor's tomb, each of which consists of more than 300 parts. The chariots are drawn by four horses, the harness of which contains gold and silver elements. Soon after the death of the emperor, his tomb was plundered, and the fire caused by the robbers led to the collapse of the ceiling, burying the many thousand-strong clay army in moist soil for more than two thousand years (it should be noted, however, that the plundered tomb in reality could only be one of the "dummies" created to divert the eyes, and the real tomb still needs to be looked for. However, this is a slightly different story).

At the very first attempts to excavate the statues, scientists encountered a very sad phenomenon: in the air, the outer layer of the sculptures quickly degraded. According to Heinz Lanhols, an archaeologist at the University of Munich, "after being removed from the soil, the statues immediately begin to dry out, and literally five minutes later, their coloring begins to peel and peel off." This happens when the relative humidity of the environment drops to 84%. To clarify the reason for the observed phenomenon, scientists conducted a chemical analysis of the statues. It turned out that the reason for the instability of the paint is due to the fact that the organic composition used before painting has undergone irreversible chemical changes during a long stay in wet soil. Therefore, now, when it dries, it begins to peel off from the underlying base together with the pigment applied over it. To avoid degradation of the veil, Lanhols, together with colleagues, proposed the following technology.

The statues removed from the ground are immediately placed in containers, the humidity in which is maintained at the same level as in the ground. Further, the entire surface of the sculptures is treated with an aqueous solution of a substance called hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA). The latter is a monomer of some of the plastics produced today. HEMA molecules are small and penetrate into tiny pores filled with moisture. After this treatment, the statues are sent to the nearby town of Linton, where the particle accelerator is located.

With the help of the latter, the warriors are irradiated with high-energy electrons, which causes the polymerization of molecules and the formation of "glue", which firmly binds the covers of the statue to the underlying terracotta. The advantages of the described method are that the HEMA molecules are water-soluble and small enough to penetrate the smallest gaps, as well as the fact that the resulting polymer does not alter the appearance of the statues, as many other compositions do (for example, many such substances are applied like varnishes and , hardening, cause some surface gloss).

British scientist Maurice Cotterell believes that the hieroglyphs of the Chinese alphabet are encrypted in the expressions on the faces of the clay warriors, with the help of which Shi-huang-di tried to convey Taoist wisdom to the descendants. According to Cotterell, each constituent element of the clay army - from the order of formation to the smallest details of the vestments - has a strictly defined meaning.

In essence, the terracotta army is a kind of ancient book, and by deciphering its secret symbols, people will not only comprehend the meaning of life, but also learn about the future. According to Cotterell, "encryption" contains information about the location of the signs of the zodiac and astrological events, on the basis of which horoscopes can be drawn up at any given time. Who will undertake this work?

Yuri Suprunenko

The terracotta army of the first Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang is one of the landmarks that rightfully claim to be the Eighth Wonder of the World. Like many others, I "heard something" about it, but I was never particularly interested in the details of the history of this army. Its location, where I recently traveled, came as a pleasant surprise to me.

Not far from his tomb, the Chinese emperor ordered to build and bury an army of more than eight thousand terracotta soldiers, officers and horses. All the figures were made in human height, lined up in military order, and buried together with the emperor himself. Information about this burial was lost (or was deliberately withheld by the chroniclers of ancient China).

Built at the end of the third century BC, the army was unknown to anyone for almost 2,200 years - until 1974. Then the Chinese peasants stumbled upon a large crowd of figures, plowing the field. Archaeologists decided to check the find, and realized that they were dealing with a unique burial.

I must say a few words about Qin Shi Huang himself, who is known for uniting China into a single state - for this he is called the first emperor. Western people know him best from the movie "Hero", in which absolutely all other characters are trying to kill him.

Qin, whose real name was Ying Zheng, took the throne at a young age - he was only 13 years old. He immediately ordered work to begin on his necropolis, including the Terracotta Army. Maybe the boyish desire to "play soldiers" played a role here? The emperor, however, had played enough of real soldiers in his life - the unification of China did not happen in a peaceful way.

Having built a huge state, Qin was terrified of death, and spent a lot of money and efforts in search of immortality, enriching many charlatans. His life ended in a very ironic way. He died at the age of fifty, during one of his trips around the empire. It is believed that the cause of death is poisoning with mercury, which he ate in capsules made by his court alchemists, supposedly for immortality. Agree - to die from the pills of immortality is very original.

I wonder what the fifty-year-old emperor, who was trying to cheat death, thought about his youthful venture to build himself a luxurious necropolis with blackjack and whores with a huge clay army ...

Buses go to the burial site from the center of Xi'an. Actually, it took about forty minutes to go, but we got stuck in a traffic jam, because of which it took more than an hour and a half to get there.

All the Chinese were driving with closed curtains, not expecting to see anything beautiful along the way. On the whole, they turned out to be right.

In China, you can't just get off the bus and look at the landmark to which you have arrived. The massive parking lot where you are dropped off will definitely be a couple of kilometers from the entrance.

The pavilion in which the main part of the army is located impresses with its dimensions from the outside. It looks more like a train station building.

By the way, the Terracotta Army is assessed by the Chinese government as.

In total, archaeologists dug up three pits with figures, around which pavilions were erected. Of these, the first is the largest and contains the largest number of soldiers. The most famous photos of the Army are from here. From the inside, the room also looks like a train station - the figures are lined up in even rows.

Each soldier in the Army is made human-sized. The figures depict the style of the armor of the time in great detail.

It is believed that up to 700,000 people worked on the emperor's necropolis, most of them were engaged in the production of these figures. Different workshops sculpted heads, arms, legs and torsos, then all this was assembled into whole figures. Thus, the Terracotta Army became one of the earliest examples of conveyor production. To keep track of the quality of work, each workshop stamped its own products, which today allows archaeologists to establish their numbers.

In addition to ordinary soldiers, the Army had figures of officers, generals and even horses! In total, archaeologists expect the burial to contain about 9,000 individual figures, most of which have not yet been excavated - work is ongoing to this day.

Some soldiers lacked their heads - some parts fell off easily.

Scientists suggest that for the production of the heads of the entire army, only eight common face shapes were used. After the face was made, it was diversified by sticking mustaches, beards, eyebrows, etc., so that the soldiers turned out to be unique.

The figures in the previous photos are the best preserved ones. Tourists see them first of all, right after entering the first pavilion. The tourist platform was built at the height of the third floor. Those who shell out for a separate excursion, or pay extra for a photo (about $ 30), are allowed to go down one level and look at the Army closer together.

Only a third of the first pavilion is occupied by whole figures. Work is still underway on the rest of the territory. The huge hall is divided into sections, where archaeologists are still digging.

When the figurines are unearthed, they are often an incomprehensible heap:

Scientists separate a piece of territory, and begin to carefully collect parts of the figures, sorting them, and trying to restore whole warriors. This allows you not to accidentally confuse pieces from different parts of the Army. Each figure is a puzzle that will surely not have enough pieces.

Semi-assembled figurines are wound with a ribbon so that they do not fall apart. Then they will glue and cover with cellophane so that the glue dries. On this site, the soldiers are almost ready.

To streamline the work, the figures are numbered.

This is how archaeologists restore soldiers who are two thousand years old. It's like a doctor is tying up a broken arm. Although it is so.

It is not clear why the different pieces are so different in color. Are some of the parts a remake? ..

Here's another soldier receiving Botox from two cute girls:

As I said, the first pavilion is the largest and the most interesting. But the other two should not be missed either, especially since they are very close by Chinese standards.

Here is the second one - it is smaller and deeper, there are not many soldiers, but those that exist are in good condition.

So that the tourists are not completely bored, here you can take a picture with the fake first rows of the Army (those from the first pavilion). Two rows of soldiers are copies of real figures, then there is a relief model, and, finally, a photo wallpaper. But the photos are almost like you climbed into this hole yourself.

They also have Photoshop craftsmen there who can "stick" your photo onto a clay figurine. It turns out to be a C. There are all sorts of celebrities photographed in this way. Even Putin is there.

Thanks to Yulia for the photo

Excavations of the third pavilion have not begun at all. So far, it has only been delimited into sections.

In our presence, some not very professional looking people were digging something there. Maybe some VIP delegations?

But here there is a chance to look at some of the figures in the distance - they stand in glass cases, and you can get very close.

This is an archer - most likely in his hands was a wooden crossbow, which has decayed over two thousand years. The figure is either very well preserved, or has been meticulously restored. It is written that this is one of the few figures on which paint has been preserved in places!

It is believed that all the figures were painted and varnished. On many, the colors were preserved while the Army was underground, but after contact with the dry air of these places, the paint folded and fell off in a matter of seconds! Look at the detail of the sole ...

And this is the general. His armor is richer.

But the shoes of all ranks are the same - with an outdated square nose. They haven't worn it since 2002!

You can get a closer look at the horse. His rider stands next to him.

The exit, as in such cases, is carried out, necessarily through the gift shop. The shop sells a variety of Terracotta Army-themed knickknacks. There are also figures of soldiers. Only for some reason they are all made of different materials except for terra cotta.

There are plastic, porcelain, metal. Anything, but not terracotta. I even asked the saleswoman:

"Do you have terracotta figurines?"

She pointed to all those from different materials. "Yes, here they are," they say.

"No, I mean, they should be made of terra cotta. Well, from clay."

The saleswoman was puzzled by this question, as if she had never imagined that someone would want a Terracotta Army memento made of exactly the same material as the bastard. "No, there aren't any," she said.

A peasant came up to me at once, and, as if in secret, took out from under the floor a box with five clay figures.

"I heard you like terra cats?" he asked in a half whisper. The saleswomen were clearly not displeased with his presence. "Only one hundred and fifty yuan ($ 21) for all five figures!"

"And for one?" I asked.

"Thirty," the guy quickly calculated in his head - that's about $ 4. "But you'd better take the whole box. For you, I'll give it for a hundred and twenty."

I offered him ten for one figure, but he insisted that I take all five. At the same time, the price fell catastrophically, as I moved away from the store.

"One hundred for all five! .. 90! .. 80! .. 50! .." I already thought that I had offered a lot for one soldier, but the price for a box continued to fall. "30 for all five! .. 20! .." said the dude. In the end, feeling like a complete idiot, I still gave him ten yuan for one figurine.

After walking a hundred meters, I saw an aunt selling the whole box for five.

The Terracotta Army is rightfully considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as you will not find such a cultural monument anywhere else. The warriors, horses and chariots of Emperor Qin Shi Huang testify to his strength and power. True, it is believed that he was a very progressive ruler of his time, since, according to tradition, all the most valuable was buried together with the ruler, including people, and his grandiose army was only sculptures.

What does the Terracotta Army look like?

The found soldiers are located under the Lishan Mountain, which looks more like a buried city with a huge amount of valuable historical objects. Among the sculptures are not only soldiers, but also horses and ornate chariots. Each person and horse is made by hand, the warriors have special, unique facial features and figures, each has its own weapon: crossbows, swords, spears. Moreover, there are infantrymen, cavalry and officers in the ranks, which can be traced in the specifics of the attire, the details of which are worked out to the smallest detail.

Many people wonder what the whole stone army of terracotta sculptures is made of. It is made of clay, but the soldiers were brought from different regions of the country, since most of them differ in the composition of the raw materials used. The horses, according to the researchers, are made from a breed taken from Mount Lishan. The reason for this is their high weight, which would greatly complicate transportation. The average weight of horses is over 200 kg, and the human figure is about 130 kg. The technology for making sculptures is the same: they were given the desired shape, then baked, covered with special glaze and paint.

The history of the appearance of the great burial

There can be no doubt as to which country the soldiers were found in, because in China of that period it was customary to bury everything that was most valuable to him alive with the deceased ruler. It is for this reason that the first ruler of the Qin dynasty, at the age of 13, thought about how his tomb would look like, and began a large-scale construction of the tomb.

His reign can be called significant for Chinese history, as he united the warring kingdoms, ending a period of brutality, plunder and fragmentation. As a sign of his greatness, he destroyed all monuments dating from the period before his reign, and burned the manuscripts describing the course of early times. From 246 BC construction began on the Qin Shi Huang tomb and was completed by 210 BC, when the emperor was placed there after his death.

According to legend, at first he planned to bury 4,000 soldiers with him, but the population of the empire was already too small after many years of endless wars. It was then that he got the idea to place the Terracotta Army with him, while it was supposed to resemble a real army. Nobody knows exactly how many warriors were placed in the tomb. It is estimated that there are more than 8,000 of them, but there may still be many unsolved mysteries hidden underground.

In addition to his army, the great emperor buried his concubines with him, as well as about 70,000 workers who worked on the creation of the cultural monument. The erection of the tomb lasted 38 years, both day and night, as a result of which it stretched for about one and a half kilometers, forming a whole city buried underground. Many strange facts are encrypted in the manuscripts about this place, which may indicate new secrets that have not yet been revealed.

Research into the mystery of China

For many years, the inhabitants of Xian walked around the hilly terrain and did not even imagine that miracles with a thousand-year history, called the Terracotta Army, were hidden under their feet. In this area, clay shards were often found, but according to legends, they could not be touched and, moreover, taken away with you. In 1974, the tomb was discovered by Yan Ji Wang, who wanted to punch a well near Lishan Mountain. At a depth of about 5 meters, a farmer bumped into the head of one of the soldiers. For historians and archaeologists, the find was a real shock and the beginning of long-term research.

The excavations took place in three stages, the last of which has not yet been completed. More than 400 Terracotta Army soldiers from those that were found first were sent to museums around the world, but most of them remained in China, where the emperor who created an amazing historical monument is located. At the moment, the guarded tomb is the most valuable asset of the country, because the highest-ranking guests are invited here in order to appreciate the greatness of the first king of the Qin dynasty.

Every tourist can visit the buried city. To do this, you don't even need to know how to get from Beijing, because most tours include a visit to the Terracotta Army in the program. In the course of it, you can take a photo of a huge array of clay sculptures with different facial expressions, as if petrified for thousands of years.