The word “Terracotta” seems bit unfamiliar and does not give the idea that what it would mean exactly. People with sculpture and construction may have the idea. Infact terracotta is a kind of material that has been used in the construction of buildings, pottery and making different kinds of sculptures in the ancient times. Terracotta is basically a combination of sand and clay. It also means “baked earth”. The main factor in making terracotta is that it is baked in the sun at low temperature. As it is made of clay, it gives a reddish brown colour. This material has the characteristic that it can be glazed to give it some extra colour, shine and make it more durable. The main use of terracotta was in China that was in ancient times in about 2nd century BC. The usage of this material has links with Egypt, West Africa, Middle East the most. With the improving methods of construction the making of terracotta has also been evolved. Initially it was baked in the sun then ovens get introduced and finally it fell into kilns. Terracotta has a wonderful characteristic that it is waterproof , that’s why we can find the sculptures and buildings made with terracotta in the very near of their original form. Another characteristic of terracotta is that it reduces the cost of making sculptures and pottery.
Terracotta warriors are the statues of King Qin Shi Huang’s army. These belong to the era 200’s BC. The statues of Terracotta warriors were discovered in 1974. the soldiers are in army uniform. There uniforms distinguish them from each other. age were digging a well when they found the wall of the mausoleum of the king Qin. These warriors depict the force of the king which defend the capital of the empire. These are the statues of the soldiers, their horses and chariots. These horses and statues are in their life size. There are three pits which contain the said statues. Pit is the largest among the three pits. It has about 2000 statues of the soldiers and horses. There is an assumption that the pit 1 may have about 6000 statues of warriors and horses and 50 chariots. These statues are made of terracotta and are given the different colours. The interesting thing about these statues is that each statue has different face and body shape.
Words about the King Qin Shi Huang?
Qin Shi Huang is one of the most important rulers of the China. He has the different reasons of popularity. He was famous for to sacrifice the life of anyone with the vision to achieve a task. This is not the imagination or indictment. Infact the ruler sacrificed thousands of laborers in the course of completing his projects. It is said that he became the king when he was just thirteen years old. He achieved more when he was thirty eight years old. At that age he had conquered the six neighboring states. The king was the first who unify the China. He introduced the same measuring and monetary system in the 7 states. The main contributions of Qin Shi Huang include agricultural reforms and construction of roads.
Tourists have great attraction towards this amazing but interesting site from the ancient times. The museum was opened in 1979 for general public. The figures show that how the tourists are taking interest in the site. It is estimated that about 2,000,000 Cinese and foreign tourists visit this museum per year. It gives revenue of about 150 million yuan to the Chinese.
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