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The 1st Emperor’s Terracotta ArmyMany places in the world have been called the 8th Wonder of the World. The Terracotta Army unearthed in 1974 in the Shaanxi province of China is just one of those places. It may not deserve a place in the limited Wonders of the World list, but it is worth visiting at least once in your life. The Terracotta Army is part of the things buried with the man known as the first Emperor to rule over unified China. He began his rule as an Emperor of the Qin dynasty in 247 B.C.E. and in 221 B.C.E. he unified China ruling over it until his death in 210 B.C.E. The mausoleum he is buried in was started in 246 B.C.E. and was worked on for 37 years. The amount of time it took to make the impressive army and the other aspects of the Emperor’s mausoleum can only partially be appreciated due to the fact that so little has been unearthed for the public to see. Most of what can be seen by tourists to the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum is just the replica army that was buried with him. Most of the tomb remains buried including the palace complex that includes towers built to serve the Emperor in the afterlife. When visiting the Terracotta Army visitors can view the warriors and horses that have been unearthed from upper walkways. While at first they seem impressive in their quantity, especially when you think about how there are more underneath the dirt piles between the rows of soldiers, they are even more impressive when you take a closer look and notice that each has a uniquely crafted facial features. When they were made they were even more impressive with colouring which has since faded, and armour, which is believed to have been stolen around the time of the Emperor’s burial. Lastly the fact that visitors can see at least part of the Terracotta Army as they looked when buried is due to the modern day effort of putting them back together. Most of the soldiers did not survive intact. It is believed that most were damaged when fire was set to the wood structures they were house in around 205 BCE. When unearthed in the 1970’s most of the Terracotta Army was not intact and they had to be pieced back together. A visit to the Terracotta Army is an easy day trip from the nearby city of Xian. Xian itself has other worthwhile attractions, but if you are mostly visiting Beijing than you can do an overnight train trip to Xian from Beijing and then hop back on one to Beijing after a day trip to the Terracotta Army. Alternatively, there are various cheap hotels and other tourist lodgings available in Xian (try lastminute.com for some bargains). 
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