China Xi’an, home of the Terracotta Army

Located at the end of the Silk Road, the ancient city of Xi’an in central China’s Shaanxi province is home to one of history’s most extraordinary archaeological finds – more than 8000 life-sized clay figures of infantry soldiers, archers, cavalry horses, chariots and acrobats, all unearthed in an imperial tomb the size of a mountain.

These sentinels have been watching over the tomb of the country’s first emperor for more than 2000 years and it appears the army is about to swell in size as digital scanning techniques reveal another 1400 unearthed statues. Recent research also suggests that the soldiers’ facial features are all di erent and may be portraits of individuals in the emperor’s army.

Housed in vast warehouses that cover the area of several football fields, the soldiers are so life-like that they appear to be marching from their subterranean barracks. Just a 40-minute drive separates the Terracotta Army from Xi’an (which now has two direct flights a week from Australia). Once China’s ancient capital, Xi’an is a fascinating destination, with towering city walls, temples, great squares and magnificent pagodas.

Bottom: The famed Terracotta Army, just one of the attractions to be found in China’s ancient capital, Xi’an (below).

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