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YEAR 11 ANCIENT HISTORY

AIS ANNUAL HISTORY CONFERENCE, THE KINGS SCHOOL 14 MARCH 2008. YEAR 11 ANCIENT HISTORY. CASE STUDY 2 ENTOMBED WARRIORS FROM XIAN. Jan Brady, Arden Anglican School. CHINA. Zhengzhou (djung jo). Xian (shee an [a as in car]). Yellow River (Wei He) Valley

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YEAR 11 ANCIENT HISTORY

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  1. AIS ANNUAL HISTORY CONFERENCE, THE KINGS SCHOOL 14 MARCH 2008 YEAR 11 ANCIENT HISTORY CASE STUDY 2 ENTOMBED WARRIORS FROM XIAN Jan Brady, Arden Anglican School

  2. CHINA Zhengzhou (djung jo) Xian (shee an [a as in car]) Yellow River (Wei He) Valley (weigh hu [as in fur])

  3. QIN SHI HUANG - OVERVIEW • Qin (family/dynasty) • Shi Huang (first emperor) • took the throne aged 13 years, under a regency • crowned King of Qin in 238 BC aged 22, and ruled on his own • by 221 BC he had unified the other six states with the Qin to become the first emperor of China • died 210 BC

  4. BACKGROUND • King Zheng (djung) • the Tiger of Qin (chin) • son and grandson of Kings of Zheng • born Ying Zheng in 259 BC in Handan • the period of The Warring States • one of many sons • mother - a minor concubine

  5. UNIFICATION OF CHINA • Qin expansion took over the other states • Han (hahn) 230 BC • Zhao (djow) ( 228 BC • Wei (weigh) 225 BC • Chu (dchu) 223 BC • Yan (yahn) 222 BC • Qi’in (chee oon) 221 BC • One China, one Emperor

  6. Is this the Emperor? • Probably not, but it is the most commonly used image • Based on a Ming dynasty image (c.1368 to 1644) • Showing Ming clothes

  7. LOCATION OF QIN PALACE AND MAUSOLEUM Eastern Zhou (770-221BC) Eastern Han (25-220), Wei (220-265) and Western Jin (317-420) capital 5 Dynasties and Sung capital 907-1127 Apang Palace WeiHe Valley Qin Shi Huangdi Tomb site and Lishan The home of emperors – the Wei He Valley approx. 600 km

  8. Apang Palace • Home of the emperor • Outside Xian • Unfinished at the time of his death but still huge • 1300 metres from north to south and 500 paces from east to west (odd measurements?) • More than 10 000 courtiers could assemble and be seated on its outer platform

  9. The site of the mausoleum of Qin Shihuang The lines of pines follow the inner and outer walls which originally surrounded the mountain Three tiered pyramid shape Lishan is in the distance on the right

  10. SIMA QIAN HAN HISTORIAN

  11. FIRST ‘MODERN’ DISCOVERY 1948 • A small figure of a servant, possibly a eunuch, found near Lishan • Nowhere near life size, stands about 50 c. high

  12. The discovery of the Warriors - 1974 • Discovered by a group of farmers digging a well • thought they had dug into an old kiln • then thought they had found an ‘earth god’ when the first soldier appeared • next they found Qin bricks, which they knew from past diggings were valuable • then found arrowheads, which were sold for scrap by the kilo • local governor informed • site commandeered by Zhao Kangmin, local historian and curator of Lintong Museum

  13. PAST DIGGINGS • Same site used for five Han tombs (1st and 2nd century AD) and 20 Ming tombs (15th to 18th century) • Before 1974 not much was said about the warriors. As they were considered bad luck, they were simply dug over

  14. THE RESCUE • Zhao Kangmin, local museum director in Lintong was called to assess the find • Began an exploratory dig within two months and revealed Pit 1 • Took 20 days to reveal the width of the pit • Another four years revealed only one fifth of the pit • Work began on Pits 2 and 3 • There are other pits – the Chinese view is that they can wait until more is known about how to preserve them

  15. TERRACOTTA WARRIORS–PIT 1

  16. Horses from the excavation of Pit 1

  17. Clerks Animals and birds Warrior Site Mausoleum Servants Carriages Lintong Village Lishan Known discoveries cover an area of 57 square kilometres

  18. Other finds – bronze carriages – half real size Open carriage Both are complete in every possible detail Defensible carriage – the Emperor’s

  19. OTHER FINDS Bronze lamp from the Apang Palace Metal bolts and fasteners from the Palace

  20. OTHER FINDS • Hundreds of pits with a single horse skeleton, some with a groom • Many single tombs with skeletons, and precious objects of gold, silver, jade and laquer • Everyday objects such as bells, bowls and tiles • A water garden • A workshop producing stone flakes for armour • Statues of officials • In all 180 pits and several hundred graves have been found – so far

  21. Construction and structure of the burial vaults • Began immediately Zheng took the throne • Pit 1 dug and extended as the figures were created. • Pit 2 created for the cavalry • Pit 3 appears to be the Army’s headquarters • Pit 4 empty, purpose unknown

  22. Concealment • Buried – it WAS a tomb • Covered pits, wooden supports and roof • Straw matting on top • Then 3 metres of soil was used to cover the whole area – most of it from the diggings themselves but also from a ‘pond’ some distance away

  23. Unexcavated parts of Pit 2 – the original beam roof and matting is shown

  24. Layout of Pit 2 Previous image taken from here The parts marked in outline are the only parts excavated in this pit

  25. Purpose • To demonstrate the magnificence and power of the Emperor forever • To defend the Emperor for eternity • As part of the Emperor’s needs in the afterlife just as they were needed in his real life

  26. Nature of Qin Warfare • Large peasant-based armies • Society based on military principles • Efficient agriculture • Committed bureaucracy • Professional army • Status and progress depended on military performance • Tough, mobile, highly disciplined • Gongs, drums, banner and flags used for communication on the battlefield • Crossbowmen, the shock troops, led the infantry

  27. Armour • Made of leather • Plated in large pieces (lower ranks) or buckled together in small pieces (upper ranks) • Some sleeve armour • Charioteers in full armour • Cavalry lightly clad

  28. Weapons • Mostly in bronze and wood, iron just developing • Crossbows and standard bows • Spears and lances • Swords • Dagger axes • Halberds

  29. Crossbows and ordinary bows New wood attached to original arrow points A new crossbow using evidence from the warrior site and an original trigger

  30. Bronze Officer’s sword

  31. Features and status of the army - Seven grades High ranking (generals?); middle ranking officers; armoured soldiers; unarmoured soldiers; charioteers; cavalrymen; and archers both kneeling and standing.

  32. Hairstyles were of social, military and aesthetic significance, so there are many differences shown • Beards and moustaches were marks of beauty and status and showed individuality within the conformity

  33. Manufacture of the warriors • On average, made in 10 parts for the body and two halves for the head • Greatest problem is balance • 3 solutions • On a base • Make them kneeling • Make the legs heavy and the body light • Made in moulds, left for a few days, then fired, though some of the heavier bodies are made of coiled clay • Local clay used and cooked in kilns built into the loess walls • The warriors are idealized, calm, limited in their individuality • Each rank of officer is taller than the lower rank

  34. The creators of the warriors • Estimated that about 100 foremen supervised about 1000 workers • Some names are known and 87 different foremen identified • Many identified as having worked on the Apang palace • Artisans made the final adjustments to each head to make it individual • How many were made? Not 8000, probably closer to 100 000 plus. So where are the others?

  35. The Museum of the Terracotta Warriors and German scientists have digitally recreated what the warriors would have looked like. This is a General of the Army. The colours are based on residues found on the clay • Source: John Man, The Terracotta Army: China’s First Emperor and the Birth of a Nation, Bantam, London, 2007, p. next to 193.

  36. Horses in Pit 3

  37. Metallurgy and military science - technology • The Terracotta Army was created at the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age • It demonstrates the most advanced bronze technology of the period • Military science was also well-developed with several well-known theories about warfare having been published, in particular Sun Zi’s The Art of War which had been written during the early Warring States Period and is still quoted today • Avoid battle unless you are assured of victory • Plan well and avoid risks • Use psychological methods to overawe your enemy • Strike hard and fast

  38. World Heritage Site Criteria met • to represent a masterpiece of human creative genius; • to exhibit an important interchange of human values within a cultural area of the world, on developments in monumental arts; • to bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared; • to be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history; • to be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs.

  39. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY AND SOURCES • Clements, Jonathan, The First Emperor: Conqueror of China. • Lonely Planet, China. • Luo Zhewen, World Cultural and Natural Hieritage Sites. • Man, John, The Terracotta Army: China’s first emperor and the birth of a nation. • Pancella, Peggy, Qin Shi Huangdi: First Emperor of China. • Portal, Jane, The First Emperor: China’s Terracotta Army • Silk Road Photo Collection, NHK. • Wu Xiaocong and Guo Youmin, The First Emperor of China. • Yang Yang and Zhao Gushan, Chinese Archeology. • http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/441 • Video: The Emperor and the Assassin, starring Gong Li (not bad historically but it is a movie), Hong Kong/China made. • Video: Tomb of the Terracotta Warriors, National Geographic. • Video: IMAX, First Emperor of China.

  40. Just some last thoughts This bronze, sand cast, pot has pride of place in Xianyang City Museum (Xianyang Shi Bowuguan. It was found on the site of the Apang Palace It stands about half a metre tall and it is stunning! What intrigues the viewer are the obvious influences from Egypt in both the style and decorations of the ‘hat’/‘crown’/‘helmet’. Alexander the Great had reached the Amu Darya River in modern day Uzbekistan approximately one hundred years before Shi Huangdi took power. China bordered the area then as it does now. Is this the contact? If not …..? What did the Chinese mean by calling their country The Middle Kingdom? The middle of what? Jan Brady

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