Another day and another highlight on a trip that so far has been highlights all the way! A very early start this morning – 6.45am – in order to ensure the best possible viewing of the Terracotta Army and of course we have to pack our bags ready for the flight later this afternoon to Beijing for some more highlights!!
Viking have established such good relationships with the Chinese authorities through their local office in Beijing that we are beingallowed to enter the Terracotta site at 8.00am some 30 minutes before the masses arrive. We join the bus and our local guide Catherine – a pretty Chinese young woman and a student of English – which she speaks fluently and without accent. All the guides to date have been good but Catherine proved to be a real joy.
The drive to the museum site took 50 minutes in glorious sunshine and promptly at 8.00am the gates open and we are allowed to drive to a drop-off point only 10 minutes walk from the entrance where we quickly make for Pit 1. The site of thousands ofterracotta figures lined up in the morning sunlight is awe-inspiring. No wonder they call this the Eight Wonder of the World.
So a little explanation first of how we come to and what we are viewing. If you want to read more then visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_Army
The Terracotta Army or the "Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses", 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 BC, whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife, and to make sure that he had people to rule over!
The figures, dating from 3rd century BC, were discovered in 1974 by some local farmers who were digging a well. You can still see the site of the well in Pit 1 and note that had they dug the well a metre to the right or left of its position the figures would never have been discovered! In the gift shop the reputed farmer signs copies of the museum guide and for an extra 20 Yuan (£2.00) he will pose for a photo. Given the thousands of people that visit he must be a very rich man!
The figures vary in height according to their roles, with the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors – mainly archers, chariots and horses. Current estimates are that the three pits contain over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which are still buried in the pits (Only Pit 1 has been excavated to any extent). Other terracotta non-military figures were also found in other pits and they include officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians.
In addition to the warriors, an entire man-made necropolis for the Emperor has also been found around the first Emperor's tomb mound located close by at the foot of Mount Li as an earthen pyramid. and The necropolis complex was constructed as a microcosm of his imperial palace or compound. The tomb has yet to be excavated since it isthought to be hermetically sealed and exposing the contents to the air might cause irreparable damage.
There are four main pits associated with the terracotta army located about 1 mile east of the burial mound and are about 7 metres deep. Thearmy is placed as if to protect the tomb from the east, where all the Qin Emperor's conquered states lay. Pit One, which is 230 metres long and 62 metres wide, contains the main army of more than 6,000 figures. It has 11 corridors, most of which are over 3 metres wide, and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of noblemen and would have resembled palace hallways. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil making them, when built, about 2 to 3 metres higher than ground level. Pit Two has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots and is thought to represent a military guard. Pit Three is the command post, with high ranking officers and a war chariot. Pit Four isempty, seemingly left unfinished by its builders.
Some of the figures in Pit One and Two show fire damage and remains of burnt ceiling rafters have also been found; these, together with the missing weapons, have been taken as evidence of the reported looting by Xiang Yu – son of the Emperor - and its subsequent burning. The burning is thought to have caused the collapse of the roof, crushing the army figures below. The terracotta figures presently displayed have been reconstructed from fragments of the crushed figures a long and painstaking process!
The terracotta figures were manufactured in workshops by government by local craftsmen. The head, arms, legs and torsos were created separately and then assembled. Studies show that eight face moulds were used, and then clay was added to provide individual facial features. Once assembled, features such as facial expressions were added. It is believed their legs were made in much the same way that terracotta drainage pipes were manufactured at the time. It is pretty clear that an assembly line production method was used, with specific parts manufactured and assembled after being fired, as opposed to crafting one solid piece and subsequently firing it. Upon completion, the terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank andduty.
The terracotta figures are life-sized and vary in height, uniform and hairstyle in accordance with rank. Most originally held real weapons such as spears, swords, or crossbows. The figures were also originally painted with bright pigments, variously coloured in pink, red, green, blue,black, brown, white and lilac although with exposure to the air the pigments have oxidised and faded. In their original coloured lacquer finish, with individual facial features, and actual weapons the figures must have been a magnificent sight.
We enjoyed a full hour in Pit 1 followed by a film in the round demonstrating how the figures were constructed.
The whole visit was pretty emotional for me and a place I had wanted to visit for some time having seen a small exhibition in Malta on a previous cruise some 6 year’s ago. I remember it well because the lady at the entrance in Malta took one look at me and said “You can have a senior citizen ticket” - true but not very flattering!
Before departing to the airport we had lunch at a JadeFactory – yet another tempting shopping opportunity!! The carving was exquisite and eventually I succumbed an bought a jade penguin and a small version of the triple carvedballs one inside the other! A $100 spend got me a small jade button too!
The flight to Beijing was uneventful and following a short rest we enjoyed a short but interesting night tour of Beijing around Tiananmen Square before a not very memorable meal although we were so tired that it didn’t really matter.
No comments:
Post a Comment