Alive in death,
50 years of Terracotta army discovery
The Terracotta Army stood guard in the dark for nearly 2,300 years. Only in March 1974 did the warrior figures come to light when local farmers in Xian, western China, discovered them. But where did they come from? And who was their creator? Here we look at how such fine figures were moulded from humble clay
Location
The purpose of the army, composed of thousands of figures, was to protect an emperor in the afterlife, and they were buried with him between 210 and 209BC. We take an in-depth look at this incredible archaeological discovery
THE ELABORATE STEPS OF THE PROCESS
Final result
Visual story by SCMP Graphics
Associate Creative Director Marcelo Duhalde
Additional research and design by Marcelo Duhalde and Brian Wang
Additional web development Joe Lo
Cover Image by Brian Wang
Sources: Discovery Channel, Treasures of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, Travel China Guide, National Geographic
*This project was originally published in print in 2014 by Adolfo Arranz, a former member of the SCMP Graphics team.
View the print version here
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