Terracotta Army, Xi'an  -  On the return to Xi'an in the late afternoon following the visit to the Qinling operation in the Xiaoqinling Mountains, the group had time to make a short detour to visit the World Heritage Terracotta Army before it closed for the day.  The approximately 8000 life sized warriors and horses of the Terracotta Army, each unique, were buried near the mausoleum and necropolis of the first Qin emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, on his death in 210 BC.  Emperor Qin united China as a single nation between 221 and 210 BC and had the army created to accompany him into the afterlife to conquer and rule a new empire there.  The army has been exposed in three separate pits, under three enclosures - the images to the centre and right above are from the first and largest pit.  The figures to the left are from pit 3.
Photographs by Mike Porter.