Our travels took us next the city of Xi'an, the site of the Terracotta Army

 

In addition to the terracotta warriors, there are two bronze chariots

Among the many warriors found, no two heads are alike, leading archaeologists to believe that each was modeled from a real person.

 

When the figures were found they were in pieces, having been destroyed by rebels shortly after they were made. The ones that are on display are reconstructed from the various pieces. While the figures are interesting and artistic individually, as you walk through the excavation area it is easy to be awed by the sheer magnitude of the undertaking--even more when you realize that only a fraction of the excavated figures have been reassembled and many more remain buried.

While in Xi'an we also visited the largest Moslem temple in China, a legacy of Xi'an's place on the Silk Road to the west