There is also speculation about a river of mercury flowing through the ancient site. In 2012, these techniques identified a 42 acre subterranean palace surrounded by a 13 foot high brick wall. Yet sophisticated ground surveying is being used on the mound containing the emperor’s tomb. Although exploration continues, the decision has been made not to unearth too many artifacts because they quickly lose their coloring upon oxidation. By 2008, six hundred additional pits had been identified.
Three years later, the Museum of the Terracotta Army opened.
#Ming xi enter the warriors gate professional#
Their professional excavation unearthed Pit Number One later in the year and two more in 1976. When the peasant farmers began selling arrowheads for pocket change, the relics came to the attention of a cultural center who alerted archeologists. The Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum was accidentally discovered in 1974 by Yang Zhifa and his brothers while drilling a well. Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum, Lintong District, Xi’an, Shanxi, China 710612 Enlarge/Slideshow See On Map DirectionsĤ Excavation History of Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum in Xi’an, China The 10,000-li Great Wall stretched for over 3,100 miles. Simultaneous to the construction of the mausoleum, Qin Shi Huang ordered a massive extension of a defense along China’s northern border. The impressive Terracotta Army seen in Pit Number One are only a fraction of this enormous complex. They contain the bodies of the royal family, government officials, high-ranking army members, concubines and mausoleum laborers. Archeologists estimate there are 600 burial sites within the surrounding 35 square miles. Their design resembles Xianyang, the capital of the Qin dynasty. Encircling the emperor’s tomb underground are a 1.5 mile inner city and a 3.9 mile outer city. At the center is an unexcavated mound shaped like a 250 foot tall subterranean pyramid. The project was finished in 208 BC, two years after the emperor’s death.
During his eleven-year reign as the First Emperor of Qin (and China), approximately 700,000 men labored over his mausoleum. In 221 BC, he defeated the last of China’s Warring States and was renamed Qin Shi Huang. Enlarge/SlideshowĢ Description of Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum in Xi’an, ChinaĬonstruction of the final resting place for Zheng began in 246 BC shortly after he became the King of Qin at the age of 13. One of them is the Xi’an City Wall shown here at night.
About 40 million domestic and foreign visitors arrive each year to explore the historical sites created by 13 dynasties. Their economy is booming thanks to strong manufacturing and service industries. Today, this capital city of Shaanxi Province has a metro population of nearly 13 million Han Chinese. Much of its success was due to being the eastern terminus for the Silk Road, a major trade route from the 2nd century BC until the 18th century. For over 2,000 years, the city experience cycles of prosperity and decline. Finally, in 1369, the Ming dynasty called it Xi’an (Western Peace).
For nearly 1,600 years, successive dynasties gave the city their own name. He named it Chang’an meaning Perpetual Peace. After King Nan of Zhou was deposed by the Qin dynasty, Emperor Qin Shi Huang created his Western Han capital here in 221 BC. In approximately 1051 BC, this became the twin cities of Feng and Hao, the capital of Western Zhou. Xi’an is also one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China. Archeological evidence suggests the area was populated over a half million years ago.