IP & Art

A few years ago,  I decided to go to the famous Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors.

The  Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors. which may be called as Terracotta Dragon refers to about 10,000 apprentice terracotta horses in the tomb of Qin Shi Huang in Xi'an, China. The terracotta warriors are four kinds of life-size soldiers (等身大, the same size as a human being): bao (步, infantry), oars (弩, a trigger bow), cha (車, chariot), and flag (騎, cavalry).

It was an hour away from the hotel I was staying at. There is an interesting anecdote about a farmer who first discovered it. More than forty years ago, the farmer was hired as a museum official for his accomplishments of discovering the Terracotta Warriors and stopped farming. It is said that he makes a living by providing the farmer's own signature to anyone who buys the Qin Shi Huang terracotta book at the museum. In fact, there was the farmer. It was said that he was around 70 years old, so it seems that he discovered it around the age of 30. Surprisingly, the farmer's expression was very bright and cheerful.

It is a figure of a man (a nobleman?) who has changed into casual clothes instead of armor and is driving four gorgeous horses. where do you want to go?

It is said that the Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors originally intended to bury the soldiers of his entourage upon the death of the emperor, but they found it too cruel and decided to make a statue to replace them. Some areas appeared to be still under excavation. However, it is believed that the tomb of Qin Shi Huang is located away from there, but it is said that the tomb has not been found yet. It seems that he kept it secret to prevent his tomb from being damaged.

A view of the troop commander's headquarters. Four horses are dragging something, and soldiers are standing around it. Judging by his hand gestures, he appears to be standing with a spear.

When I saw the statue of the Terracotta Warriors in person, there was no big difference from what I saw in the photo. It was large, but I didn't feel that they were so overbearing. At the time of the first excavation, it was colorful and colorful, but after excavation, it was oxidized due to the influx of air, etc. Anyway, it was surprising to be able to guess the culture of the Qin Shi Huang period 3000 years ago. Unfortunately, seeing the Qin Dynasty destroyed 15 years after the death of Qin Shi Huang only makes us feel that nothing is permanent in the world.

It seems that even the emperor cannot change the true fact  that life itself is uncertain and vain. Qin Shi Huang, who had believed that his dynasty would last forever, must have been in vain when he died and saw the Qin dynasty destroyed in heaven immediately after his death.