China Continued: We had to be dragged away from Chengdu and the Pandas but we finally agreed to leave and flew several more hours to the city of Xian. As with all the cities we visited we were amazed at how ultra modern and Western it was. But wed come to Xian to visit the famed Terra-Cotta warriors, unearthed, after several farmers discovered and reported them to the Government only a few decades ago, in 1974, after being buried for more than two thousand years. Some statues had been previously discovered but were destroyed by the superstitious. Back in late 1985 I was driving from a convention in Glasgow to London when I learned several of the warriors were on exhibit at the Edinburgh Natural History museum. I was thrilled to see even a few of the statues, but knowing we were going to China there was no way I was going to miss seeing the complete dig. So far approximately 6,000 warriors, in all states of damage, have been unearthed, but the dig still continues. What is amazing is each warrior is different; each hand-made rather than coming out of a singular mold. If you want to learn more about them theres a fairly good documentary available on Netflix. The statues and the museum that was built around them to preserve the actual dig site, are amazing. We also met one of the farmers who discovered the statues back in 74. We saw a lot more in Xian than the Warriors, but they were the highlight of the trip, and something we wont soon forget. For someone who loves history, they are simply incredible. Next we conclude our trip with Beijing, the Great Wall and the Forbidden City.
Posted on: Tue, 03 Jun 2014 16:34:00 +0000
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