Seven six-layer days – Day Five

Mornings come early but I usually get ready first and go down to the breakfast room and chat with other members of the tour as well as getting ready for the day mentally. The rug helpfully reminded me that it was Sunday. I went to the business center and quickly sent an e-mail home. The server here immediately brought me an orange juice and the personnel are very helpful and attentive.

We went to the site of a primitive matriarchal society that has been unearthed. The area is called Banpo Village and was the site of the earliest pottery making kiln discovered in China to this date. They said that the women were the organizers and the main force in the village. They were engaged in pottery making, weaving, domestic animal rearing and farming while the men were mainly engaged in fishing, hunting, and fighting. I am not exactly sure how they know all that but it doesn’t seem to be too different from now, does it?

We wandered around there for a while and then went on to a Terra Cotta Warriors factory. They make souvenirs for tourists like us. There are a couple of the people who buy something of everything. I have restrained myself until now. I did buy a horse for Ms. Kay, the horse lover. She probably doesn’t need or want it but I thought she needed it.

There are also always opportunities for tourists to take pictures as well

From the factory we were off to the actual pits where the Terra Cotta Warriors were discovered. The "Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses", is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. The figures, dating from 210 BC, were discovered in 1974 by a local farmer in Lintong District, Xi'an, Shaanxi province, near the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor. There will not be a test on this. Sitting in the book store was the man that discovered the figures. He was digging a well and came upon these shards of terra cotta and, digging further, discovered figures. He was signing books and would not allow a picture to be taken unless you bought a book. The figures vary in height, according to their roles, with the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots, horses, officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians. The Army's purpose was to help rule another empire with Qin Shi Huang in the afterlife. Current estimates are that in the three pits containing the Terracotta Army there were over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which are still buried in the pits. The exposure to the air caused some of the figures to deteriorate, and many have been covered up again. The warriors were once highly colored but now are earthen colored. Each of the warriors has a different face and apparently no two are alike. According to what we were told, when the emperor was buried, so were his wives, concubines and the people who worked on the warriors. He thought he would need them in the afterlife. After a period of time, there was damage to the warriors and nearly all of the heads were taken off. There is a laboratory on the grounds that restores the figures and then they are displayed. It was fascinating to see and I am so glad that I saw them. It does make one glad that our view of the afterlife is based not on superstition but on the Word of God and that nothing we have in this life will be needed in heaven.

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