Over the course of the Tang dynasty, Buddhism permeated the country’s governance, while the dynasty’s artistic exports became internationally renowned and imitated. Furthermore, the glory and brightness of the Tang dynasty stood in stark contrast to the Dark Ages in Europe.

But what was the Tang dynasty, how did it flourish, and why did it ultimately fail?

It was born out of chaos

After the fall of the Han dynasty in 220 AD, the next four centuries were characterised by warring clans, political murders and foreign invaders. The warring clans were reunified under the ruthless Sui dynasty from 581-617 AD, which accomplished great feats such as the restoration of the Great Wall of China and the construction of the Grand Canal which linked the eastern plains to the northern rivers.

Sunrise on the Grand Canal of China by William Havell. 1816-17.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

However, it came at a cost: peasants were taxed highly and forced into hard labour. After a mere 36 years in power, the Sui dynasty collapsed after popular riots broke out in response to heavy losses in a war against Korea.

Amongst the chaos, the Li family seized power in the capital Chang’an and created the Tang empire. In 618, Li Yuan declared himself Emperor Gaozu of Tang. He maintained many of the practices of the ruthless Sui dynasty. It was only after his son Taizong killed two of his brothers and several nephews, forced his father to abdicate and ascended the throne in 626 AD that China’s golden age really began.

Reforms helped the dynasty to flourish

Emperor Taizong shrank the government at both central and state levels. The money saved allowed for food as surplus in case of famine and economic relief for farmers in the case of flooding or other disasters. He set up systems to identify Confucian soldiers and put them into civil service placements, and he created examinations which allowed talented scholars with no family connections to make their mark in government.

‘The Imperial Examinations’. Civil service exam candidates gather around the wall where results had been posted. Artwork by Qiu Ying (c. 1540).

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Moreover, he seized a portion of Mongolia from the Turks and joined expeditions along the Silk Road. This allowed Tang China to host Persian princesses, Jewish merchants and Indian and Tibetan missionaries.

The common people of China were successful and content for the first time in centuries, and it was during this successful era that woodblock printing and gunpowder were invented. These became defining inventions of the golden age of China, and when adopted worldwide catalysed events that would change history forever.

After his death in 649, Emperor Taizong’s son Li Zhi became the new Emperor Gaozong.

Emperor Gaozong was ruled by his concubine Empress Wu

Wu was one of the late Emperor Taizong’s concubines. However, the new emperor was deeply in love with her, and commanded that she be at his side. She won Emperor Gaozong’s favour over his wife, and had her dismissed. In 660AD, Wu took on most of Emperor Gaozong’s duties after he had a stroke.

Wu Zetian from an 18th-century album of portraits of 86 emperors of China, with Chinese historical notes.

Image Credit: Public domain

Under her rule, overland trade routes led to huge trade deals with the West and other parts of Eurasia, making the capital one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. Commerce involving textiles, minerals and spices flourished, with the newly open avenues of contact further opening Tang China to changes in culture and society. Wu also campaigned extensively for women’s rights. In all, she was probably an extremely popular ruler, particularly among the common people.

Upon Gaozong’s death in 683 AD, Wu maintained control through her two sons, and in 690 AD proclaimed herself Empress of a new dynasty, the Zhao. This was to be short-lived: she was forced to abdicate, then died in 705 AD. It is telling that upon her request, her gravestone was left blank: she was disliked by many conservatives who deemed her changes to be too radical. She trusted that later scholars would look upon her rule favourably.

After a few years of in-fighting and plotting, her grandson became the new Emperor Xuanzong.

Emperor Xuanzong transported the empire to new cultural heights

During his rule from 713-756 AD – the longest of any ruler during the Tang dynasty – Xuanzong is most well-known for facilitating and encouraging political, economic, cultural and social contributions from across the empire. India’s influence upon the empire was marked, and the emperor welcomed Taoist and Buddhist clerics to his court. By 845, there were 360,000 Buddhist monks and nuns throughout the empire.

The Emperor also had a passion for music and equestrianism, and famously owned a troupe of dancing horses. He created the Imperial Music Academy as a means of further spreading the international influence of Chinese music.

The era was also the most prosperous for Chinese poetry. Li Bai and Du Fu are widely regarded as China’s greatest poets who lived during the beginning and middle periods of the Tang dynasty, and were lauded for the naturalism of their writings.

‘Pleasures of the Tang court’. Unknown artist. Dates to the Tang dynasty.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Emperor Xuanzong’s fall eventually came. He fell so in love with his concubine Yang Guifei that he began to ignore his royal duties and promote her family to high positions within government. Northern warlord An Lushan mounted a rebellion against him, which forced the emperor to abdicate, severely weakened the empire and lost much Western territory. It also reportedly cost millions of lives. Some place the death toll as high as 36 million, which would have been around a sixth of the world’s population.

The golden age was over

From there, the decline of the dynasty continued during the second half of the 9th century. Factions within the government began feuding, which led to plots, scandals and assassinations. The central government weakened, and the dynasty split into ten separate kingdoms.

After a series of collapses from around 880 AD, northern invaders finally destroyed the Tang dynasty, and with it, the golden age of China.

The Chinese state would not approach the power or breadth of the Tang for another 600 years, when the Ming replaced the Mongol Yuan dynasty. However, the scope and sophistication of the golden age of China was arguably greater than either India or the Byzantine Empire, and its cultural, economic, social and technological innovations have left a lasting imprint on the world.

Most historians of ancient China agree that Buddhism arrived in the 1st century AD during the Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD), brought by missionaries from neighbouring India travelling along trade routes into China.

However, even once Buddhism had arrived, it was the translation of a large body of Indian Buddhist scriptures into Chinese that had far-reaching effects for spreading Buddhism throughout China and into Korea, Japan and Vietnam.

Here’s the story of how Buddhism spread to China.

The Silk Road

It is likely that Buddhism came to Han China by the Silk Road – either by land or sea. Some historians favour the sea hypothesis, claiming that Buddhism was first practiced in south China along the Yangtze and Huai River regions.

The other side of the argument is that Buddhism arrived in the northwest of China via the Gansu corridor, following the Yellow River basin in the 1st century AD, gradually spreading into Central Asia.

More popularised accounts in Chinese literature say that Emperor Ming of Han (28-75 AD) introduced Buddhist teachings into China after having a dream that inspired him to search out a god possessing the “brilliance of the sun”. The emperor sent Chinese envoys to India, who returned carrying the Buddhist Sutra scriptures on the back of white horses. They were also joined by two monks: Dharmaratna and Kaśyapa Mātanga.

Ultimately, the arrival of Buddhism in China is even more complex than just the question of travelling by sea, land or white horse: Buddhism has multiple schools that filtered into China’s different regions independently.

Buddhism indeed first arrived in China via the Silk Road and was based on the Sarvastivada school, which provided a foundation for Mahayana Buddhism in turn adopted by Japan and Korea. Buddhist monks accompanied merchant caravans along the Silk Road, preaching their religion along the way. The Chinese silk trade boomed during the Han dynasty and at the same time, Buddhist monks spread their message.

Buddhism continued to spread into Central Asia under the Kushan Empire of the 2nd century as the kingdom expanded into the Chinese Tarim Basin. Indian monks from central India, such as the monk Dharmaksema who had been teaching in Kashmir, also found their way into China to spread Buddhism from the 4th century AD onwards.

Before Buddhism

Before the arrival of Buddhism, Chinese religious life was characterised by three major belief systems: the cult of Five Deities, Confucianism and Daoism (or Taoism). The cult of Five Deities was the state religion of the early Shang, Qin and Zhou dynasties between roughly 1600 BC and 200 BC, and also an ancient practice dating back to Neolithic China. Emperors and commoners alike worshipped a universal God that could appear in five forms.

China during the Han dynasty was also devoutly Confucian. Confucianism, a belief system that focuses on maintaining harmony and the balance of society, appeared in China during the 6th and 5th centuries BC.

This painting depicts Confucius giving a lecture as Zengzi kneels before him to ask about filial piety, Song dynasty (960-1279 AD).

Image Credit: National Palace Museum / Public Domain

The Chinese philosopher Confucius had celebrated the power of an individual’s morality in helping others during a time of political and social upheaval in China as the Zhou reign ended. Although this did not prevent Confucian followers from suffering persecution during the short-lived Qin dynasty (221-206 BC) as scholars were killed and Confucian writings burnt.

Daoism is a religious philosophy which came about in the 6th century BC, advocating for a simple and happy life guided by nature. Buddhism differed from Confucianism and Daoism by highlighting the suffering of human life, the impermanence of material things and the importance of finding a reality beyond the one you currently lived in.

Early Chinese Buddhism

Buddhism did have trouble finding a footing in China at first. Monasticism and Buddhism’s focus on the self seemed in conflict with the traditions of Chinese society, so much so that Buddhism was thought harmful to state authority by many Chinese officials.

Then, in the 2nd century, Buddhist scriptures began being translated by Indian missionaries. These translations revealed a shared language and attitude between Buddhism and Daoism. Buddhism’s focus on growing inner wisdom aligned with Daoist thought, while its emphasis on morality and rituals also appealed to Confucian intellectuals among the gentry and imperial courts.

The first documented translations began with the arrival of the Parthian monk, An Shiago, in 148 AD. An Shiago was believed to be a  Parthian prince who gave up his throne to become a Buddhist missionary. He worked hard to establish Buddhist temples in Luoyang (the Han capital of China) and his translations of Buddhist scripts into Chinese signalled the start of widespread missionary work.

8th-century fresco depiction of Han Emperor Wu worshiping statues of the Buddha.

Image Credit: Getty Conservation Institute and the J. Paul Getty Museum / Public Domain

Chinese emperors also began worshipping the Daoist deity Laozi and Buddha as equals. An account dating to 65 AD describes Prince Liu Ying of Chu (today’s Jiangsu), “delighted in the practices of Huang-Lao Daoism” and had Buddhist monks at his court, presiding over Buddhist ceremonies. A century later in 166, both philosophies were found at the court of Emperor Huan of Han.

Daoism became a way for Buddhists to explain their ideas and help Chinese people to comprehend their philosophy as translations of Buddhist scripture showed similarities between Buddhist nirvana and Daoist immortality. From its arrival in China, Buddhism therefore coexisted with native Chinese religious philosophies Confucianism and Daoism.

Chinese Buddhism after the Han dynasty

Following the Han period, Buddhist monks could be found advising northern non-Chinese emperors in politics and magic. In the south, they influenced the literary and philosophical circles of the upper class.

By the 4th century, Buddhism’s influence had begun to match that of Daoism across China. There were almost 2,000 monasteries scattered across the south which thrived under the Emperor Wu of Liang (502-549 AD), a keen patron of Buddhist temples and monasteries.

At the same time, the distinct schools of Chinese Buddhism were forming, such as the Pure Land school of Buddhism. Pure Land would eventually become the dominant form of Buddhism in East Asia, entrenched in common Chinese religious life.

Eventually, seeking to deepen their spirituality, Chinese pilgrims began retracing Buddhism’s first steps along the Silk Road to its homeland, India.

Today, tea is enjoyed worldwide. The British are particularly renowned for their love of the stuff, and drink 100 million cups a day, which adds up to nearly 36 billion a year. However, the trade of tea between Britain and China has a long and rocky history, with the countries going so far as waging the Opium Wars at least in part over the sale of the commodity.

From its origins in China to its rocky journey to the West, here’s the history of tea.

The origins of tea are steeped in legend

Legend has it that tea was first discovered by the legendary Chinese emperor and herbalist Shennong in 2737 BC. He reportedly liked his drinking water to be boiled before he drank it. One day, he and his retinue stopped to rest while travelling. A servant boiled water for him to drink, and a dead leaf from a wild tea bush fell into the water.

Shennong drank it and enjoyed the flavour, stating that he felt as if the liquid was investigating every part of his body. As a result, he named the brew ‘ch’a’, a Chinese character meaning to check or investigate. Thus, tea came into being.

It was originally used in limited quantity

A Ming dynasty painting by artist Wen Zhengming illustrating scholars greeting in a tea party, 1518.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Before tea was enjoyed as a widespread beverage, tea was used medicinally by the elite as early as the Han dynasty (206-220 AD). Chinese Buddhist monks were some of the first to develop tea drinking into a habit, since its caffeine content helped them concentrate during long hours of prayer and meditation.

Indeed, much of what we know about early Chinese tea culture is from The Classic of Tea, written in around 760 AD by Lu Yu, an orphan who grew up cultivating and drinking tea in a Buddhist monastery. The book describes early Tang dynasty culture and explains how to grow and prepare tea.

Widespread tea consumption appeared during the Tang dynasty

From the 4th to the 8th century, tea became hugely popular throughout China. No longer merely used for medicinal properties, tea became valued as an everyday refreshment. Tea plantations appeared throughout China, tea merchants became wealthy, and expensive and delicate tea wares became a mark of wealth and status.

When Lu Yu wrote The Classic of Tea, it was normal for tea leaves to be compressed into tea bricks, which were sometimes used as a form of currency. Much like matcha tea today, when it was time to drink the tea, it was ground into a powder and mixed with water to create a frothy beverage.

Most tea bricks ‘Zhuan Cha’ are from Southern Yunnan in China, and parts of Sichuan Province. Tea bricks are made primarily from the broad leaf ‘Dayeh’ Camellia Assamica tea plant. Tea leaves have been packed in wooden moulds and pressed into block form. This tea is a one pound brick which is scored on the back and can be broken into smaller pieces.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Tea became widely consumed and highly prized. It was even specified that owing to their purity, only young women were permitted to handle the tea leaves. In addition, they were not allowed to eat garlic, onions or strong spices, lest the odour contaminate the precious leaves.

Tea varieties and production methods evolved

During the Ming dynasty (1368-1644 AD), an imperial decree saw tea bricks replaced with loose leaf tea as a way of making life easier for farmers since traditional tea-brick making was labour intensive.

Up to the mid-17th century, green tea was the only form of tea in China. As foreign trade increased, Chinese tea manufacturers realised that tea leaves could be preserved via a special fermentation process. The resultant black tea both retained its flavour and aroma longer than delicate green tea, and was much better-preserved over a long distance.

Britain became obsessed with tea in the 17th century

The Portuguese and Dutch introduced tea into Europe in 1610, where it caught on as a popular drink. The British, however, were initially suspicious of continental trends. When King Charles II married the Portuguese princess Catherine of Braganza in 1662, her dowry included a chest of fine Chinese tea. She began serving the tea to her aristocratic friends at court, and it finally caught on as a fashionable beverage.

Urns used to store tea and sold by merchants to customers. Also shown to the left is a basket for harvesting tea.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

The Chinese empire tightly controlled the preparation and cultivation of tea, which remained highly expensive and the preserve of the upper classes. A status symbol, people commissioned paintings of themselves drinking tea. The British East India Company made their first tea order of 100lbs of Chinese tea in 1664.

Punitive taxation from 1689 almost led to the death of the trade, but also created a black market boom. Criminal gangs smuggled some 7 million lbs of tea into Britain annually, compared to a legal import of 5 million lbs. This meant that tea could be drunk by the middle and even lower classes, rather than just by the rich. It exploded in popularity and was consumed across the country in tea houses and at home.

Tea contributed to the Opium Wars

As British tea consumption grew, Britain’s exports couldn’t keep up with their demand for tea imports. China would only accept silver in exchange for tea, which proved difficult for the British. Britain came up with an illegal solution: they grew opium in their colony of India, had China exchange it with India in exchange for silver, then traded the same silver back with China in exchange for tea, which was imported into Britain.

China tried to ban opium, and in 1839, Britain declared war on China. China responded by placing an embargo on all exports of tea. The resultant 21 years of conflict, known as the Opium Wars (1839-1860), ended in Chinese defeat and led to a greatly expanded Western influence in China, a weakening of the Chinese dynastic system and paved the way for future rebellions and uprisings in the country.

One of the most damaging events of the Opium Wars was the theft of Chinese tea plants and tea-making and processing methods in 1848 by Scottish botanist and traveller Robert Fortune. Fortune, who disguised himself as a Chinese tea merchant as a way of buying plants and obtaining information, cultivated enormous tea-making farms in India. By 1888, Britain’s resultant tea imports from India outstripped China for the first time in history.

Over the next century, the explosive popularity of tea was cemented around the world, and China eventually regained its status as the world’s leading tea exporter.

The Chinese are the biggest tea-drinkers in the world

Today, the Chinese remain the biggest tea-drinkers in the world, consuming 1.6 billion pounds of tea leaves a year. ‘Tea’ is used as a catch-all term for many different brews in the West. However, the word only really applies to beverages made from the leaves of the original camellia sinensis plant that first fell into the emperor’s hot water. One strain of tea called the tieguanyin can be traced back to a single plant discovered in the Fujian province.

Old men chatting and drinking tea in a old traditional Sichuan teahouse in Chengdu, China.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Drinking tea is an art. Chinese tea can be classified into six distinctive categories: white, green, yellow, oolong, black and post-fermented. In China, tea bags are uncommon: instead, loose leaf tea is steeped in hot water.

Today, China produces thousands of types of tea. From its humble beginnings as an unknown leaf blown into a pot of boiling water to the explosive popularity of 21st-century bubble tea, tea has changed the course of history and remains a staple in households around the world.

Though it was demolished in 1994, some historical artefacts from the walled city such as its yamen (administrative) building and the remnants of its southern gate have been preserved as part of the Kowloon Walled City Park.

History of Kowloon Walled City

The existence of a walled city on the site can be dated to the Song Dynasty (960-1279), when an outpost was constructed to oversee the trade of salt. Few changes were made for hundreds of years afterwards. In 1842, Hong Kong Island was ceded to the British via the Treaty of Nanjing. The Qing authorities therefore improved the fortification to rule the area and monitor the British.

In 1898, The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory assigned further parts of Hong Kong to the British for 99 years. However, this excluded the walled city, which was then lived in by around 700 people. China was permitted to keep officials there so long as they didn’t interfere with the defence of British Hong Kong. However, the British governor believed that the city was being used to coordinate resistance movements. In 1899, British forces attacked the walled city but found that all of the soldiers were gone.

In 1912, Qing Dynasty rule ended and the city was left to the British, who did little with it over the following decades. In 1933, Hong Kong authorities proposed demolishing the decaying buildings; however, the Nationalist Chinese government protested against the plan and claimed jurisdiction until the war between China and Japan erupted.

By 1940, only the yamen (administrative centre) and one house remained, and during World War Two, much of the stone was used by Japanese forces to expand the nearby airport.

After World War Two, refugees and citizens poured into the city. Over the following decades, the city became a hub for crime and was practically ruled by Triads, or crime syndicates. In the 1960s, the city was further developed, and skyscrapers were built up to 14 storeys high. It was so cramped that sunlight didn’t reach the ground, and living conditions were appalling.

In the early 1990s, the British and Chinese authorities agreed to demolish the city and turn it into a park, and by 1994, demolition was complete.

Kowloon Walled City today

Today, Kowloon Walled City exists as a park. Its design is modelled on Jiangnan gardens from the early Qing Dynasty and is divided into eight landscape features. The fully restored yamen is the centrepiece, while paths and pavilions are named after streets and buildings in the walled city.

Other artefacts, such as inscribed stones, cannons and wells are also on display.

Getting to Kowloon Walled City

The walled city park is best accessed from Tung Tao Tsuen Road in Kowloon. By road, it is about 5 or 6 kilometres away from Star Ferry. The Lok Fu MTR station is less than a kilometre away and is the closest station.

The date of the festival changes annually: according to Western calendars, the festival begins with the new moon that takes place sometime between January 21 and February 20. What doesn’t change, however, is the significance and history of the festival, which is steeped in legend and has evolved over some 3,500 years into what it is today.

Here’s the history of Chinese New Year, from its ancient origins to modern celebrations.

It is rooted in farming traditions

The history of Chinese New Year is intertwined with ancient agrarian society. Though the date of its exact beginning is not recorded, it probably began during the Shang dynasty (1600-1046 BC), when people held special ceremonies at the beginning and end of each year in accordance with the seasonal agricultural planting cycle.

With the emergence of the calendar in the Shang dynasty, the early traditions of the festival became more formalised.

Its origins are steeped in legend

Like all traditional Chinese festivals, the origins of Chinese New Year are steeped in stories and myths. One of the most popular, which emerged during the Zhou dynasty (1046-256 BC), is about the mythical beast ‘Nian’ (which translates to ‘year’), who terrorised local people by eating livestock, crops and even humans on the eve of every new year. To prevent the monster from attacking them, people left food on their doorsteps for it to eat instead.

Traditional red lanterns are hung to scare away Nian.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

It is said that a wise old man realised that Nian was scared of loud noises, bright colours and the colour red, so people put red lanterns and red scrolls on their windows and doors and crackled bamboo to scare Nian away. The monster was never seen again. As such, celebrations now include fireworks, firecrackers, red clothes and bright decorations.

The date was fixed during the Han dynasty

During the Qin dynasty (221-207 BC), the turn of a year cycle was called Shangri, Yuanri and Gaisui, and the 10th lunar month marked the beginning of a new year. During the Han dynasty, the festival was called Suidan or Zhengri. By this time, celebrations were less focused on beliefs in divinities and ancestors, and instead stressed the festival’s association with life.

It was Emperor Wudi of the Han dynasty who fixed the date as the first day of the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar. By that time, Chinese New Year had become an event that featured a government-sponsored carnival where civil servants gathered in celebration. New traditions also began to emerge, such as staying up at night and hanging peach boards, which later evolved into the Spring Festival couplets.

During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the festival took hold among common people

Two girls putting fuses into firecrackers, Changde, Hunan, China, ca.1900-1919.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

During the Wei and Jin dynasties (220-420 BC), alongside worshipping gods and ancestors, people began to entertain themselves. In particular, the tradition took hold among common people. It became custom for a family to get together to clean their house, set off bamboo firecrackers, eat together and stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Younger people would also dress in traditional smart dress to kneel down to senior family members.

The Tang, Song and Qing dynasties marked the beginning of ‘modern’ traditions

Qing dynasty new year money purse, with coin, gold and silver ingots, and jade. Now stored in The Palace Museum.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

The Tang, Song and Qing dynasties accelerated the development of the Spring Festival, which marked the beginning of the modern social traditions of the festival as we know them today. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, the celebration was called ‘Yuanri’, and the festival was fully embraced as an event for all people, irrespective of class.

During the Tang dynasty, it became important to visit relatives and friends – people were granted public holidays to allow them to do so – eat dumplings, and give ‘new year’s money’ in a purse to children. During the Song dynasty, black powder was invented, which led to the emergence of fireworks for the first time.

During the Qing dynasty, events for entertainment such as the dragon and lion dances, Shehuo (folk performance), walking on stilts and lantern shows emerged. In China, the dragon is a symbol of good fortune, so the dragon dance, which consists of a long, colourful dragon being carried through the streets by many dancers, is always a highlight.

Traditionally, the last event held during the Chinese New Year is called the Lantern Festival, during which people hang glowing lanterns in temples or carry them during a nighttime parade.

Chinese New Year traditions are still emerging in modern times

The largest Chinese New Year parade outside Asia, in Chinatown, Manhattan, 2005.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

In 1912, the government decided to abolish Chinese New Year and the lunar calendar, instead opting to adopt the Gregorian calendar and make January 1 the official start of the new year.

This new policy was unpopular, so a compromise was reached: both calendar systems were kept, with the Gregorian calendar being used in government, factory, school and other organisational settings, while the lunar calendar is used for traditional festivals. In 1949, Chinese New Year was renamed the ‘Spring Festival’, and was listed as a nationwide public holiday.

While some traditional activities are disappearing, new trends are emerging. CCTV (China Central Television) holds a Spring Festival Gala, while red envelopes can be sent on WeChat. However it is celebrated, Chinese New Year is the most important traditional festival in China, and today its bright colours, fireworks and social activities are enjoyed by millions across the world.

The tomb and the Terracotta Army were only discovered in 1974 by a group of local farmers. Since then, extensive archaeological excavations have been carried out at the site and on the warriors themselves, but there are still parts of the tomb complex that haven’t been explored.

Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Terracotta Army draws visitors from all over the world who are eager to see this incredible archaeological site and learn about the importance of Qin Shi Huang in global history.

Here are 8 images that tell the remarkable story of Qin Shi Huang’s Terracotta Army.

1. The army was built for the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang

Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, in Xian, China

Image Credit: Tatsuo Nakamura/Shutterstock.com

Zhao Zheng, his birth name, was born in 259 BC and became King of Qin at the age of 13. Known for being a ruthless and paranoid leader (he was constantly afraid of being assassinated and attempts were made), Qin launched attacks on the other Chinese states resulting in unification in 221 BC. Zheng then declared himself Qin Shi Huang, First Emperor of Qin.

2. 700,000 workers were conscripted to build the tomb

Terracotta Army

Image Credit: VLADJ55/Shutterstock.com

The mausoleum is the largest known tomb in Chinese history and some 700,000 workers helped construct it and its contents. At the bottom of the 76-metre-tall tomb is a sprawling city necropolis, modelled on the capital Xianyang.

Qin was buried with weapons, his Terracotta Army to protect him, treasures and his concubines. Traps were set to attack looters and a mechanical river with flowing mercury was installed. All the workers that made the mechanical devices were buried alive in the tomb to protect its secrets.

3. 8,000 soldiers make up the Terracotta Army

Terracotta Army

Image Credit: Costas Anton Dumitrescu/Shutterstock.com

It is estimated that there are over 8,000 terracotta soldiers at the site with 130 chariots, 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses. Their purpose is not only to show Qin’s military strength and leadership but to also protect him after death.

4. The soldiers are roughly life-size

The Terracotta Army

Image Credit: DnDavis/Shutterstock.com

The larger figures are the most senior members of the army and they are set out in a military formation. Military personnel include infantry, cavalrymen, chariot drivers, archers, generals and lower-ranking officers. It seems that the faces of each of the soldiers is different but form from 10 basic shapes that match their ranks and positions in the army.

5. The army contains chariots, musicians and acrobats

One of the bronze chariots

Image Credit: ABCDstock/Shutterstock.com

Two broken bronze chariots were found in the mausoleum. It took 5 years to restore the chariots which are now on display at the Museum of the Terracotta Warriors. In addition to the army, other terracotta figures that Qin would need in the afterlife included musicians, acrobats and officials.

6. Originally the army was painted with bright colours

Recreated and coloured Terracotta warriors

Image Credit: Charles, CC 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Research suggests that the army would have had cream faces, green, blue and red uniforms and armour and black and brown detailing. Other colours used included brown, pink and lilac. The faces were painted to give them a realistic feel.

7. Skilled labourers and craftsmen were used

Terracotta Army

Image Credit: Costas Anton Dumitrescu/Shutterstock.com

Each body part was made separately in workshops and then moulded together before being placed in the pits. To ensure quality and craftsmanship, each piece was inscribed with its maker’s name. The colourful paint would have peeled off when the soldiers were excavated and removed from the mud.

The soldiers were also equipped with real weapons including swords, bows, arrows and pikes.

8. Over 1 million people visit the Terracotta Army every year

The Reagans standing with the Terracotta Army, 1985

Image Credit: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

There is a global fascination with the Terracotta Army. Exhibitions housing artefacts have been held all over the world including the British Museum in 2007, drawing the biggest number of tourists ever for the museum.