subject: The Terra Cotta Warriors Are Coming To Calgary [print this page] A chance to see artefacts like this ony comes around once in a lifetime. Next summer hundreds of objects, dozens of statues, and several paintings from the tomb of the First Emperor of China will be on display at the Calgary Glenbow Museum. The First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, conquered and ruled China over two thousand years ago. His massive tomb was actually designed to be a military compound from which he could rule the kingdom of the afterlife. This necropolis was surrounded by an army of roughly 8,000 statues of infantry, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry (so far, that is. Many archaeologists belive that there are many more still waiting to be discovered).
The Glenbow will not be hosting the entire army, of course. The exhibit will consist of 18 full statues of different rank. Two of those statues are those of high ranking Generals in the First Emperor's army, the army that conquered and subsequently unified all of China. There will also be some brand new archaeological finds being shown for the first time, some 300 objects of interest from the tomb, as well as a couple of horses, and some paintings.
The most exciting part for me is the legacy that Qin Shi Huang left behind him. He became the king of his country, which was at the time a small splinter of what China would become, at the tender age of 11. He spent his entire life in one long and very successful war of unification. Once China was united, Qin Shi Huang made sweeping changes, some of which would become some the greatest enginerring mavels of all time. To make a short list; he build an enormous road network across all of China and standardised the length of cart axles to make sure everyone could use it, he also began construction on what would become the Great Wall of China, it's also worth noting that he standardised the Chinese language across what was (until recently) separate countries, and he began construction on the massive monument that was his tomb.
A few quick facts about the tomb itself:
- Construction on this massive necropolis began in 246 BC and continued until the Emperor's death 31 years later. There were 700 000 workers employed in the construction of the tomb and, even though the project had the population of a small country working on it for three decades, the tomb was never fully completed.
- When Qin Shi Huang ordered construction to begin on his tomb he was 13 years old (kids grew up fast back then).
- The level of detail in the sculpting is truly exquisite; every soldier is hand-painted and lacquered down to the smallest detail and was given a unique face, right down to the expression.
- Despite the vast amount of land and artefacts that have been uncovered, the tomb proper has yet to be breached. Apparently, the archaeologists are still developing the technology to enter the tomb without damaging it. Their caution is understandable, according to ancient historian Sima Qian, the First Emperor was buried with palaces, scenic towers, officials, valuable utensils and various treasures, with 100 rivers fashioned in mercury flowing through a map of the earth; and this model of the earth is completed by the sun, moon, and stars carved into the ceiling of the tomb itself.
