The official announcement is coming a week today (January 27) but news continues to trickle out about the exhibition of the Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, set to hit Toronto in June.
Officials have been tight-lipped about this exhibit so what we've been hearing has been in drips and drabs.
Last night, I had the amazing opportunity to join other fellow bloggers and photographers at the sneak-preview of the Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China's First Emperor exhibit. It is an amazing and awe-inspiring collection of detailed weaponry, life-size figures, limestone armor, and intricate details I've never had the priviledge to see first-hand before.
I was immediately taken by the sheer size of the figures. On first entering the exhibit, you're immediately met by a massive horse and calvary man that looms large in the entry room.
The entire exhibit is bursting with the essence of ancient China from the paintings and artifacts adorning the walls, to the low ambience of oriental music, to the lush reds, oranges and browns used in the colour scheme.
Submitted by Michael Kan on Wed, 10/14/2009 - 11:17
Although each of the Terracotta warriors was sculpted to be unique, one common physical trait they all share is a beard. But a new discovery has found that a handful of statues bear no facial hair, suggesting that the Terracotta army had teenaged soldiers enlisted in its ranks.
The Terracotta Army was built at the behest of China's first emperor more than 2,000 years ago, when beards were a must for all adult males. To have one was a matter of respect, and one way of dealing with criminals at the time was cutting off their beards as a form of punishment.
Submitted by Sean Williams on Wed, 09/30/2009 - 15:59
Ever seen the Terracotta Warriors? Did you feel a bit peckish when you saw them; couldn't help thinking the First Emperor's Mausoleum would be made so much better if you could take a bite out of each handcrafted treasure? If the answer's yes to both these questions - and I truly hope it's not - you may want to book a flight to the Chinese capital next year: Beijing officials have announced plans to build the 'World Chocolate Dream Park', a Willy Wonka-style attraction aimed at the Chinese people's love of, well, chocolate.
Senior Curator at the Museum of the Qin Terracotta Army and Heritage Key expert, Janice Li, gives us a list of her top sites at the First Emperor'stomb site. Having conducted and led archaeological excavations at the site over the past 20 years, she knows the area like the back of her hand, and shares some insights into one of the most fascinating finds in recent decades!
We know the Terracotta Warriors under many different names: the Terracotta Army, Qin's Warriors, the Army of the First Emperor, The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, ... but what if those are almost all wrong? What if the famous stone soldiers were not Emperor Qin Shihuang’s guardians for the afterlife? That's exactly what historian and architect Chen Jingyan writes in his recently published book 'The Truth of the Terracotta Warriors': the mastermind behind the Terracotta Warriors is Empress Xuan, not the First Emperor.
Yuan Zhongyi, former director of the Museum of the Terracotta Warriors comments: "The question of the real owner of the warriors has been debated since the very beginning. The conclusion that the warriors were the funeral objects of Emperor Qin was made by a group of scholars and it has been widely accepted at home and abroad."
This will be the final stop of a US tour for the Terra Cotta Warriors exhibition - the largest display of objects from and related to the Terra Cotta Warriors site, outside of the city of Xi'an in China, even to visit America.
Comprising around 7,000 life-sized, individually carved soldier figures, created over 2,000 years ago, the Terra Cotta Warriors were intended to be an honour guard in the afterlife for the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi Huang. Discovered buried in pits by Chinese farmers in 1974, they represent one of the most spectacular archaeological finds of the 21st century. This exhibition will feature around 100 items, including weapons, armor, coins and - most importantly - 15 of the Terra Cotta Warriors themselves.
Archaeologists are currently excavating further areas of the mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, the first and most infamous Emporer of China. The site, where the magnificent terracotta warriors were discovered relatively recently - 1974 - contains the undisturbed tomb of the Emperor. With rumours of flowing mercury and incomparable treasures, the question on everyone's lips is - what's inside?
Highlighted Quote:
Artisans apparently carved a map of the entire Qin kingdom on the floor, laced the ceiling with jewels to represent to sky, and created rivers and oceans with quicksilver.
With the Terracotta Warriors, Guardians of China's First Emperor exhibition by National Geographic upcoming in Washington DC and excavations at Xi'an starting again, there are again some great - and non ripped-off - videos related to the Terracotta Army appearing on YouTube. My favourite 3 at the moment:
1. Making of the Terracotta Warriors
It can be said that the more or less 8000 Terracotta Warriors (and acrobats, and horses, and generals and ...) were one of the first 'items' ever to be constructed in bulk on an assembly line - together with the weapons for the First Emperor's real soldiers -, as the figures had their separate body parts manufactured by different workshops that were later assembled to completion. Each workshop then inscribed its name on the part they manufactured to add traceability for quality control. This is clearly visible in this video by Galleria Pangea, where they are working on the torso part of a clay warrior:
2,000 years ago China's First Emperor took thousands of terracotta warriors to the grave. Learn about these fantastic figures, and make one to take home yourself.
The official announcement is coming a week today (January 27) but news continues to trickle out about the exhibition of the 
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