Came across this from SkyscraperCity of Shanghai’s Pudong are – same perspective taken in 1990 and in again in 2010.
From the China Daily:
A company of Terracotta Warriors – most painted in rich colors – have been unearthed at the largest pit within the mausoleum complex of the emperor who first unified China.
A total of 114 Terracotta Warriors have been found at No 1 pit, one of three, where excavation started in June last year, said Xu Weihong, head of the excavation team.
“The total area of the excavation was some 200 sq m and we were pleasantly surprised to find rich colors on Terracotta Warriors,” he said.
Photos of the new find are expected to be released later this month.
The clay warriors, ranging in height from 1.8 m to 2 m, had black hair; green, white or pink faces; and black or brown eyes, the archaeologist said.
“It was hard work to restore the clay warriors as they were broken into pieces. It took us at least 10 days to restore one,” Xu said.
The latest excavation also showed that the pit had seven layers, said Liu Zhanchang, director of the archaeology division of the Museum of Qin Shihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses.
Also, traces of burns on the clay warriors and the walls prove that the pit had been set on fire, Liu said, adding more studies were needed for details.
A number of other relics including weapons, chariots, drums and painted wooden rings were also found during the excavation.
Qin Shihuang (259-210 BC), also called the First Emperor of China, was the founder of China’s first unified feudal empire, the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC).
The pit – located in Lintong district of Xi’an, capital of Northwest China’s Shaanxi province – was discovered accidentally by farmers in March 1974.
On Oct 1, 1979, the Museum of Qin Shihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses was opened to the public. It attracts millions of visitors from home and abroad every year.
The pits contain funerary objects for the mausoleum of Qin Shihuang, which is located some 1.5 km west of the pits. The clay warriors and horses are believed to represent the emperor’s army.
The discovery of the Terracotta Warriors is considered one of the most spectacular finds in the annals of archaeology and described as one of the wonders of the world.
Note that these are not the new discoveries above but the original find you can now see in Xian.
A good read from National Geographic about the ancient Tea Horse Road, a trade route from China into Tibet. It starts “Deep in the mountains of western Sichuan I’m hacking through a bamboo jungle, trying to find a legendary trail. Just 60 years ago, when much of Asia still moved by foot or hoof, the Tea Horse Road was a thoroughfare of commerce, the main link between China and Tibet. But my search could be in vain. A few days earlier I met a man who used to carry backbreaking loads of tea along the path; he warned me that time, weather, and invasive plants may have wiped out the Tea Horse Road.” read more…
An hour from Hangzhou or several hours from Shanghai is curious Wuzhen, an ancient water town much restored to either it’s former glory or as a bit of a historical theme park depending on how you want to view it. The town is made up of a partially restored east side and fully restored west. A mish mash of old and new separates the two zones. The east side has a lived in feel and is more genuine but the west side is far larger and more impressive if a little sanitized. What can’t be ignored is the sheer scale of this tourism project – vast and very ambitious and, overall, very well done so the verdict is that it is worth a visit.
I have just finished reading Jasper Becker’s City of Heavenly Tranquility. A fantastic read for anyone who has an interest in Beijing and especially for anyone who has lived there at any point in the last 20 years. His account of Beijing’s history is highly readable whether it is the Mongol days of the Yuan Dynasty or the recent build up (quite literally) to the 2008 Olympics.
You can read an extract from the book here at Danwei.
For those interested in Communist kitsch Beijing has several themed restaurants designed for tourists or locals with a sense of nostalgia. The Beijinger has a run down of them here.
They do miss my favourite though – The Red Capital Club – which has a wonderful setting full or memorabilia from the 50s and 60s. I did a photo shoot there a few years back for a guidebook an of the many I took this one below is still my favourite.
With so much exposure of the new China in the last few weeks it is well to remember the China of not that long ago – in this case 1981. Three posts from Chineast.
Hat tip to the Shanghaiist.
Launched in 1950 and designed as a vehicle for presenting captivating photographs alongside informative and interesting articles, China Pictorial became the first comprehensive publication conceived after the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949. The masthead of the magazine was inscribed by the late Chairman Mao. Click here for more covers.
China Pictorial Review Covers 1950 and 1953
A fascinating set of photos taken from 1966 to 1970 courtesy of the China Daily.
I’m always interested in photography from the Mao era. These photos are particularly interesting as some of them show the Chinese building the TAZARA railway that goes from Tanzania to Zambia. I took that back in 1993 and perhaps it can be considered my first Chinese journey.
