Terracotta Army

The discovery of the exquisite Terracotta Armored General statue, part of the much larger excavation of the entire collection of the Terra-cotta Army, reveals that the early Qin Chinese dynasty firmly believed in immortality of the soul and the persistent influence of the dead. The exhibition of the Terracotta army was one of the most influential show casings of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The single most compelling piece of the entire exhibition was the Armored General. The Armored General was just one of the thousands of life-sized soldiers uncovered in Xian, China. The Terracotta army was originally built during the classical Chinese Empire, under the ruling of Qin Shihuangdi. The army was built for the purpose of protecting the king throughout the afterlife. The army's construction initially took place under the orders of the king, as he obsessively searched for immortality. The type of immortality that Qin Shihuangdi may have finally come to terms with is that which was widely believed by the entirety of the Chinese Empire; the immortality of the soul during the afterlife. This belief that the soul was forever immortal led to the notion that the dead had consistent influence over the living realm. In building this armored general and the rest of the vast underground Terracotta army, King Shihuangdi hoped to carry on his legacy and truly become the immortal being he had always strived to be.

The Terracotta Army Exhibition at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts has set a record for most visited exhibition in the past 20 years. This did not come as a surprise to the museum administrators as they knew that the Qin Dynasty's Terracotta warriors were one of the most fascinating excavation finds in history. The MIA's particular exhibition featured more than 100 objects excavated from the burial complex of the first Qin State Emperor, Qin Shihuangdi. The exhibition featured a total of eight life-sized Terracotta soldiers, and two of their horses. The one particular item that I analyzed in depth is the Armored General statue. This particular sculpture of the highly ranked guard was somewhat intimidating, yet thoroughly fixating.

The Terracotta Armored General stood tall, at roughly 175 cm. The statue was intrinsically compelling, as it was meant to mimic a real human being. The first attribute of the statue that seemed to capture its viewer was its color. It was mainly comprised of a mixture of brown, grey, and orange colors. It had various white blotches, particularly on the face, most likely signifying signs of aging. As I walked around the statue to capture the various angles, I realized that it had a very elaborate, yet faded, color scheme. This hinted to me that it may have been originally painted. The face of the statue consisted of Chinese genetic features, and included a moustache and a beard. The stone General seemed relaxed, as he posed with his hands clamped to each other in front of his pelvic area. The armored General wore a seemingly traditional hair style, which one does not see very often in today's culture. The statue wore a long armored coat, which extended down to its knees. The coat manifested an intricate engraved pattern, which I assumed originated from classical Chinese art. The final characteristic that stood out within this magnificent creation were the feet. On this particular statue, the feet were somewhat small. The shoes the General wore were extremely simplistic, almost yielding no detail at all.

According to the MIA, this armored general was part of a much larger scheme by the late Qin Shihuangdi as he obsessively pursued immortality. The great Terracotta Army is a series of life-sized clay figures, whose original construction began in 246 B.C.E. Until recent research, it was believed that each clay warrior yielded its own unique facial features, but it was proven that this elaborate army was "an early feat of mass production" (Ways of the World, 182). According to the MIA, the purpose of this Armored General is to lead in the protection of the tomb of the great Qin Shihuangdi. The emperor lived nearly 2200 years ago and was notorious for his obsessive fear of death, which ultimately led him to construct the Terracotta army. He took to power when he was only thirteen years old and immediately began planning for his afterlife (artsmia.org). He rose to power during a hectic period of Chinese history, during which the warring states fought incessantly for supremacy. Shihuangdi would ultimately rise to unify the Chinese states under one empire. The Terracotta army was built by more than 700,000 conscripts from all around China, taking nearly 38 years to complete. This particular Armored General was found in Xian, China, when a group of peasants digging a well accidently stumbled across the complex in which it resided along with nearly 6000 other life