These sculptures hail from as far back as 250 BCE, and are known for their lifelike appearance and precise level of detail, taking around 40 years to produce.
There are two stories packed into the broader history of the Terracotta Soldiers. One has to do with the way it was accidentally discovered, while the other has to do with how and why were the Terracotta Soldiers created.
These Terracotta Soldiers were housed in a massive tomb designed and constructed for the emperor. The archaeologists who first began professional expeditions at the site had no idea of this.
The production history of the Terracotta Soldiers also involves the many artisans and laborers who exerted great effort to construct both the clay figures and the emperor of China’s large and complex tomb.
Historians remain perplexed about how a project of this magnitude was possible at this point in history, especially since archaeologists have found little evidence of workshops near the site.