A rare decorated statue was uncovered among the “terracotta army” in the tomb of the ancient Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang.
Based on the figure’s features and location, archaeologists believe that it depicts a high-ranking military officer. It is only the 10th of its kind to be excavated.
Qin Shi Huang ruled between 221 and 210 B.C.E. He was the first leader to unite China under one empire. His tomb in China’s Shaanxi Province takes up more than 20 square miles and contains around 8,000 life-size clay statues of soldiers known as the “terracotta army.”
They carry spears, swords, and crossbows. Their purpose is to protect the emperor in the afterlife. The majority of the warriors wear simple armor, but the most recently discovered figure dons colorfully painted armor that is carved with intricate details.
“These adornments on the high-ranking officers indicate how special they are,” said Xiuzhen Janice Li, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford who worked at the Emperor Qin Shi Huang’s Mausoleum Site Museum. “The style and color of the adornments featured the aesthetic taste and social status symbols [of the time.]”
Since the tomb was discovered in 1974 during the construction of a well, roughly 2,000 soldiers have been unearthed, but only 10 of them have been statues of military leaders. The figure was found next to the remains of three clay horses, two chariots, and two additional statues.
According to excavation leader Zhu Sihong, the decorated statue is the first senior military figure to have been found at the site since formal excavations began in 1994.
Excavations of this particular section of the site started in 2015. Over the years, researchers have come across buried formations of chariots, cavalry, and crossbowmen. The tomb’s chariots are typically accompanied by three soldiers and four horses.
“The arrangement of the high-ranking officers in the military formation reflected the military strategy, such as [the] commanding system in the Qin dynasty,” said Li.
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Military officers are distinguished by their headpieces and colorfully patterned armor. Usually, their hands are clasped in front of their abdomens, and their shoulder pads and armor are adorned with ribbons.
The rare statue of the army general was broken into several pieces, but its layers of paint were preserved by the surrounding sediment.
One researcher noted that silt provides a relatively stable temperature and humidity, which helps prevent the breakdown of the colors.
The research team labeled the pieces before taking them to a laboratory for further examination. While the findings offer new insights into the hierarchy of Qin Shi Huang’s ancient army, much is still unknown about the terracotta warriors.
For instance, questions about who the top general in charge of controlling the entire terracotta army remain.
