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The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China.

The figures, dating from approximately the late 200s BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong County, outside Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army hold more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remain in situ. Other, non-military terracotta figures have since been found in other pits, including those of officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians.

The construction of the tomb was described by the historian Sima Qian (145–90 BCE) in the Records of the Grand Historian, the first of China's 24 dynastic histories, which was written a century after the mausoleum's completion. Work on the mausoleum began in 246 BCE, soon after Emperor Qin (then aged 13) succeeded his father as King of Qin, and Sima said that the project eventually involved 700,000 conscripted workers.

The Terracotta Army was discovered on 29 March 1974 by a group of farmers—Yang Zhifa, his five brothers, and neighbour Wang Puzhi—who were digging a well approximately 1.5 km (0.93 mi) east of the Qin Emperor's tomb mound at Mount Li (Lishan), a region riddled with underground springs and watercourses.

The Terracotta Army is part of a much larger necropolis.

For example, after the excavation of the Terracotta Army, the painted surface present on some terracotta figures began to flake and fade.

She said that "the terracotta warriors may be inspired by Western culture, but were uniquely made by the Chinese," and many local elements also contributed to the creation of the Terracotta Army.

The terracotta army figures were manufactured in workshops by government laborers and local craftsmen using local materials.

The terracotta army left a legacy however, as funeral terracotta armies are known from later dynasties, although in a less stern and militaristic style, and with much smaller statuettes, such as the Western Han Yangjiawan terracotta army (195 BCE) or Yangling terracotta army (141 BCE).

Between 15 June and 17 September 2006 the exhibition entitled "Los Guerreros de Terracota: Un Ejercito Inmortal" ("The Chinese Terracotta Army: An Immortal Army"), composed of 73 objects, were displayed at the National Museum of Colombia in Bogotá. A collection of 120 objects from the mausoleum and 12 terracotta warriors were displayed at the British Museum in London as its special exhibition "The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army" from 13 September 2007 to April 2008. An exhibition entitled "L'Empereur guerrier de Chine et son armée de terre cuite" ("The Warrior-Emperor of China and his terracotta army"), featuring artifacts including statues from the mausoleum, was hosted by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from 11 February 2011 to 26 June 2011. In Italy, from July 2008 to 16 November 2008, five of the warriors of the terracotta army were displayed in Turin at the Museum of Antiquities, and from 16 April 2010 to 5 September 2010 nine statues including officials, lancers and an archer were displayed at the Royal Palace in Milan at the exhibition entitled "The Two Empires". Several Terracotta Army figures were on display, along with many other objects, in an exhibit entitled "Age of Empires: Chinese Art of the Qin and Han Dynasties" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City from 3 April 2017 to 16 July 2017. An exhibition featuring ten Terracotta Army figures and other artifacts, "Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor," was on display at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, Washington, from 8 April 2017 to 4 September 2017 before traveling to The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to be exhibited from 30 September 2017 to 4 March 2018 with the addition of augmented reality.

Quick Facts

• A collection of 120 objects from the mausoleum and 12 terracotta warriors were displayed at the British Museum in London as its special exhibition "The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army" from 13 September 2007 to April 2008.
• Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army hold more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remain in situ.
• Between 15 June and 17 September 2006 the exhibition entitled "Los Guerreros de Terracota: Un Ejercito Inmortal" ("The Chinese Terracotta Army: An Immortal Army"), composed of 73 objects, were displayed at the National Museum of Colombia in Bogotá.
• She said that "the terracotta warriors may be inspired by Western culture, but were uniquely made by the Chinese," and many local elements also contributed to the creation of the Terracotta Army.
• Other, non-military terracotta figures have since been found in other pits, including those of officials, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Terracotta Army". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.