Hole found in Terracotta Army pit; experts looking into it
Staff Reporter 2012-11-02 12:15
The Terracotta Army near Xi'an. (Photo/CFP)
A hole which may have been dug by graverobbers centuries ago looting the tomb of China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, may offer some clues as to why many of the soldiers in the famous Terracotta Army were damaged when they were rediscovered in the 1970s, reports Want Daily, our Chinese-language sister newspaper.
A group of farmers uncovered the clay figures by accident in 1974 when digging a well to the east of Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province in northwestern China, formerly the imperial capital of Chang'an. The army was a mile to the east of the Qin Emperor's tomb at Mount Li. The army, believed to have been intended to guard the emperor in the afterlife after his death in 210 BC, contains terracotta warriors, chariots and horses. Approximately 8,000 warriors, 130 chariots and 670 horses all uniquely crafted have so far been uncovered in three pits, which are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and visited by hundreds of thousands of people every year. The site is still being excavated.
A 1.2-meter hole was found this year in Pit No. 1, which is suspected to have been dug by graverobbers. The hole may offer some answers to the destruction of some the warriors which were found to have been broken, burned or suffered damage from flooding due to unknown causes.
Experts have theorized that someone set fire to some of the warriors in a section with good ventilation, as opposed to the theory that fire broke out spontaneously in the enclosed pit.
