Todd's Travels in China: Day 5: Xi'an & Terracotta Army

Day 5 - Thurs. Jan. 2: We started out by visiting the Terracotta Army Museum and Qin Shi Huangdi’s Tomb located outside the city of Xi'an. This is one of those amazing sites that must be seen to be fully appreciated. It’s so impressive and overwhelming that it’s hard to imagine what it must have been like intact over 2,200 years ago.

Discovered by peasants digging a well in 1975, the army of terracotta warriors and horses is the most significant archeological excavations of the 20th century, a fascinating record of artistic achievement, and a grandiose expression of imperial power. Qin Shi, who ascended the throne at the age of 13 in 246 BC, pronounced himself the first emperor of China in 221 BC and unified the country by defeating the rival factions. He then embarked on a series of reforms and projects that laid the foundation of imperial China. He standardized the systems of weights and measures and money and laid the foundations of the political and legal systems. He conscripted thousands of workers on the construction of both the Great Wall and the terracotta army, which he believed would protect him in the afterlife from his numerous enemies. It took 11 years to finish. The three vaults were originally covered with wooden roofs under a layer of earth and contained colorfully painted, life-sized figures modeled from yellow clay. No two figures are alike. Each is unique and exquisitely detailed. Altogether over 7,000 pottery soldiers, horses, chariots, and weapons have been unearthed from these pits. Many of them have been restored to their former grandeur.

Terracotta Army - Pit 1

Terracotta Army - Pit 2

Terracotta Army - Pit 3

The terracotta army, however, is just one part of a complex necropolis that is larger than the Great Pyramid in Egypt. Qin Shi Huangdi (259 – 210 BC) enlisted 700,000 people over 36 years in the construction of his tomb complex, which lies a mile west of the three pits. The unexcavated mausoleum is said to include an inner city, an outer city, and a gem-studded underground imperial palace. In addition to a grand tomb that housed Emperor Qin Shi’s bronze coffin, the complex is also believed to contain 48 tombs for concubines, who were buried alive, a fate also reserved for workers to prevent the location and design from becoming known.

Statue of Qin Shi Huangdi

Our English-speaking guide, Peter, accompanied us on a tour of both sites, after which we departed for our next destination, the Banpo Neolithic Village Museum. We began our visit after a lunch of regional cuisine at a restaurant just next to the museum, which gets its name from the remains of Banpo village, located east of X’ian. The Banpo period (4800 – 3600 BC), part of the matriarchal Yangshao culture that lasted from around 5000 – 2800 BC, saw the dawn of China’s painted pottery tradition. The village remains were discovered in 1953. About 500 late Neolithic people inhabited the village beginning around 4500 BC. Remains include over 40 houses, over 200 cellars, and 6 kilns. We visited for a little over an hour.

Model of Banpo village houses

Returning to Xi'an, we stopped to visit the Great Wild Goose (Dayan) Pagoda and the Da Ci’en (Mercy and Kindness) Temple complex that surrounds it. Originally built in 648 by Tang Emperor Gao Zong, the 64-meter pagoda offers a splendid view of the city. Just outside the park stands a statue of Xuanzang, the monk who journeyed for 17 years to India and returned with bundles of Buddhist sutras and relics. Together with 50 workers, he translated the scriptures from Sanskrit into Chinese, totaling 1,335 volumes, and had the pagoda built to store them. This heralded a new era in the history of translation.

Great Wild Goose Pagoda (Dayan Ta)

The Great Wild Goose Pagoda derives its name from legend. According to ancient stories of Buddhists, there were two branches, for one of which eating meat was not a taboo. One day, they couldn't find meat to buy. Upon seeing a group of big wild geese flying by, a monk said to himself, “Today we have no meat. I hope the merciful Bodhisattva will give us some.” At that very moment, the leading wild goose broke its wings and fell to the ground. All the monks were startled and believed that Bodhisattva showed his spirit to order them to be more pious. They established a pagoda where the wild goose fell and stopped eating meat. Hence its name.

View of Da Ci’en and the fountain from the Great Wild Goose Pagaoda

Da Ci’en (Temple of Mercy and Kindness)

Unfortunately, we missed the nightly musical water show at the giant fountain just north of the pagoda. Then we strolled the nearby market area before returning to the Muslim Quarter for some evening snacks. Really loving the city of Xi'an!

Candy-makers in a Muslim Quarter market

After the goo is pulled, it is mixed with chopped nuts and other ingredients and pounded

Click on the following links for more information about

The Terracotta Army Museum

Qin Shi Huangdi’s Tomb

Banpo Museum

The Great Wild Goose Pagoda