Terracotta Army
The Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang. My favourite. Qin Shi Huang was the first Emperor of China who had the army buried with him in about 210 BC. The object being for them to be his bodyguard in the afterlife, apparently. He must have been a worrier, there are reckoned to be over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses. Then there were the nonmilitary figures, including musicians. They are of course all life size. It’s widely reputed that each figure has a different face. This isn’t entirely accurate. In fact some eight moulds were used, then bits of clay were added to them to make them a bit different. They were also manufactured in pieces and later assembled on a sort of production line style. 47
They were originally painted and held weapons but the paint faded and many of the weapons were either looted or rotted away over time. Many of the figures are still not excavated. Some weapons were found and were still sharp. The swords were covered with chromium oxide which has kept them in perfect condition even after 2000 years of being buried. Source: Smithsonian.com.
A terracotta soldier with his horse,CHINA