All language subtitles for Chinas.Dragon.Emperor.Series.1.2of2.Architect.of.the.Afterlife

Narrator: OVER 2,000 YEARS AGO,

\h\h\h\hTHE 13-YEAR-OLD RULER
OF A KINGDOM IN FAR EAST ASIA

ORDERED THE BUILDING
\hOF HIS MAUSOLEUM.

THE BOY WOULD GO ON
TO CONQUER AND UNIFY

THE SEVEN WARRING STATES
OF A CRUMBLING DYNASTY,

MAKING IT ONE NATION
FOR THE FIRST TIME.

HE WOULD LATER BE KNOWN
\h\h\hAS QIN SHI HUANG,

OR THE FIRST EMPEROR OF QIN,

AND WOULD LEAVE BEHIND
\h\hAN ENDURING LEGACY

THAT HAS SHAPED THE CHINA
\h\h\h\h\h\hWE KNOW TODAY.

BUT THE LOCATION
AND MAGNIFICENCE

OF HIS FINAL RESTING PLACE
\hWAS LOST FOR CENTURIES.

Man: HE WAS LAYING

SOME OF THE MOST INTRICATE
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hPREPARATIONS

TO GO ON LIVING AFTER DEATH.

\hNarrator: THEN, IN 1974,
WORKERS IN NORTHWEST CHINA

FOUND FRAGMENTS OF A CLAY FIGURE

\h\h\hAND UNEARTHED
ONE OF THE GREATEST

ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIN HISTORY.

Woman: NOTHING LIKE THAT
\h\hHAD BEEN DISCOVERED

BEFORE THAT TIME.

THIS WAS COMPLETELY
\h\h\hUNPRECEDENTED.

Narrator: ARCHAEOLOGISTS
\h\h\h\h\hWOULD EXCAVATE

\h\h\hTHOUSANDS OF TERRA-COTTA
SOLDIERS, HORSES AND CHARIOTS.

\h\h\h\h\hHOW WERE THESE
LIFE-SIZE FIGURES MADE?

WHY WERE THEY EQUIPPED
\h\hWITH REAL WEAPONS?

AND WHAT OTHER SECRETS ARE THERE

\h\h\h\h\hBURIED DEEP BENEATH
THE COLOSSAL MAN-MADE MOUNTAIN

HONORING CHINA’S FIRST EMPEROR?

♪

♪

DURING THE SUMMER OF 1974,

NEAR THE CENTRAL CHINESE CITY
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF XIANYANG,

CAME NEWS OF A SPECTACULAR
\h\h\hARCHAEOLOGICAL FIND.

BURIED SOME 15 FEET
\h\h\hBELOW GROUND,

\hNOT ONE BUT HUNDREDS
OF LIFE-SIZED FIGURES,

MADE OF CLAY.

\h\hAN ARMY OF SOLDIERS
THAT WOULD BECOME KNOWN

AS THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS.

ARCHAEOLOGIST YUAN ZHONGYI
WAS ONE OF THE EXCAVATORS

WORKING AT THE SITE.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

\h\hYuan Zhongyi, translated:
WHEN THE TERRA-COTTA SOLDIERS

WERE DISCOVERED, PEOPLE IN CHINA

AND AROUND THE WORLD
\h\h\h\hWERE AMAZED.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hNarrator:
TEAMS OF ARCHAEOLOGISTS

\h\h\hDESCENDED UPON THE SITE,
COMBING THROUGH DIRT AND CLAY,

TRYING TO SOLVE A MYSTERY
\h\hOVER 2,000 YEARS OLD.

\h\h\hYuan: IT WAS A PUZZLE,
BECAUSE NO ONE HAD ANY IDEA

WHAT THE STATUES WERE.

\h\h\hSOME PEOPLE THOUGHT
THEY WERE STATUES OF GODS.

\h\hA FEW OLD WOMEN
WENT INSIDE THE SITE

\hAND BURNED INCENSE
AND WORSHIPPED THEM.

\hOTHER PEOPLE SAID
THEY WERE FALSE GODS

AND THAT THEY SHOULD
\h\h\hBE DESTROYED.

\hNarrator: NO ONE KNEW
WHO CREATED THE FIGURES,

NOR DID THEY KNOW WHEN OR WHY.

HUNDREDS OF OBJECTS WERE DUG UP
DURING THE EXCAVATION,

BUT ARCHAEOLOGISTS’ QUESTIONS
\h\h\h\h\hREMAINED UNANSWERED.

THEN THEY UNCOVERED A VITAL CLUE
TO SOLVING THE MYSTERY--

\hA NUMBER OF RELICS
THEY COULD PIN DOWN

TO A SPECIFIC TIME PERIOD.

THEY WERE BRONZE WEAPONS
\h\hCALLED A DAGGER-AXE.

\h\h\hIT CONSISTS OF
A LONG WOODEN SHAFT

WITH A BLADE ATTACHED
\h\h\h\h\hTO THE TIP,

AND WAS USED TO THRUST AT
\h\h\hAND STAB THE ENEMY.

RESEARCHERS FOUND ON THE BLADES
OF THE WEAPONS

A STATEMENT WRITTEN
IN A CHINESE SCRIPT

FROM THE THIRD CENTURY B.C.

\h\h\h\h\h\hYuan: IN THE PIT
OF THE TERRA-COTTA SOLDIERS,

SOME WEAPONS WERE EXCAVATED.

AND ON THOSE WEAPONS
\hWERE INSCRIPTIONS

OF THE MINISTERS OF THE TIME,
\h\h\h\h\hINCLUDING LU BUWEI,

WHO SERVED UNDER QIN SHI HUANG,

\hTHE FIRST EMPEROR
OF THE QIN DYNASTY.

THIS CONFIRMED THAT THE TOMB
NEARBY WAS QIN SHI HUANG’S.

\hIT WAS IMPOSSIBLE
TO THINK OTHERWISE.

Narrator: BUT ONLY AFTER
\h\h\h\hMORE EXCAVATION

\h\hDID ARCHAEOLOGISTS LEARN
THE EXTENT OF THE DISCOVERY.

THEY ATTRIBUTED THE VAST TABLEAU
TO THE FIRST EMPEROR OF CHINA,

QIN SHI HUANG, THE RULER
\hWHO CREATED THE NATION

\h\h\h\h\hOUT A GROUP
OF WARRING PROVINCES.

\h\h\hTHE FIGURES, DUBBED
THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS,

LOOKED VIVIDLY LIFELIKE,

\hAS IF BLOOD FLOWED
THROUGH THEIR VEINS.

\h\h\h\h\h\hSTANDING IN
BATTLE-READY FORMATION,

THIS ARMY WAS UNVEILED
\h\hFOR THE FIRST TIME

IN OVER 2,000 YEARS.

THE TERRA-COTTA ARMY CAPTURED
\h\h\hTHE PUBLIC’S IMAGINATION

AND FUELED INTENSE CURIOSITY
\h\hABOUT THAT ANCIENT ERA.

\hVISITORS WANTED TO KNOW MORE
ABOUT THE RULER QIN SHI HUANG

\h\h\hAND WHY THE ARMY OF STATUE
WARRIORS CAME TO BE BURIED HERE.

COMPLICATING MATTERS, SIMA QIAN,

THE HISTORIAN WHO CHRONICLED
\h\h\h\hTHE EMPEROR’S LIFE,

OFFERS LITTLE HELP.

Michelle Wang: SIMA QIAN WROTE
\h\h\hNOTHING OF THE EXISTENCE

OF THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS.

THERE’S NOTHING IN HIS ACCOUNT
\h\h\h\h\hTHAT SUGGESTS TO US

\hTHAT HE WAS AWARE
OF THEIR PRODUCTION,

AND INTERMENT IN THE PITS

\hTHAT SURROUNDED THE FIRST
EMPEROR OF QIN’S MAUSOLEUM.

Narrator: ANSWERING QUESTIONS
ABOUT THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS

\h\hREQUIRES A JOURNEY BACK
INTO CHINA’S EARLY HISTORY.

IN 246 B.C., A NEW KING
\h\hASCENDED THE THRONE

IN THE WESTERN STATE OF QIN.

LITTLE WAS EXPECTED OF HIM
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAT THE TIME.

HE WAS ONLY 13 YEARS OLD.

HIS NAME WAS YING ZHENG,

THE RULER WHO WOULD LATER
\h\hBECOME QIN SHI HUANG,

CHINA’S FIRST EMPEROR.

FOLLOWING ROYAL TRADITION,
\hUPON TAKING THE THRONE,

\h\h\hTHE KING ORDERED HIS
PRIME MINISTER, LU BUWEI,

TO FULFILL A SPECIAL COMMAND.

\h\hHou Ningbin, translated: BY
THE SECOND YEAR OF THEIR REIGN,

KINGS WOULD BEGIN BUILDING
\h\h\h\h\hTHEIR OWN TOMBS.

THAT’S WHY, AT 14,

\h\h\h\hYING ZHENG ORDERED THE
CONSTRUCTION OF HIS MAUSOLEUM.

\hNarrator: THE CAPITAL
OF QIN STATE, XIANYANG,

IS ONE OF THE OLDEST
\h\hCITIES IN CHINA.

\hIT WAS THE EASTERN GATEWAY TO
THE FAMED SILK ROAD TRADE ROUTE

\h\h\hAND SERVED AS A CENTER OF
POLITICS, ECONOMY, AND CULTURE.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAROUND 246 B.C.,
ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF XIANYANG,

WORK BEGAN ON WHAT WOULD BECOME

\hTHE YOUNG RULER’S
FINAL RESTING PLACE.

♪

\h\hTHE BURIAL MOUND
IS 345 METERS WIDE,

\h\h350 METERS LONG,
AND 55 METERS HIGH,

\hA STRUCTURE BIGGER THAN
THE GREAT PYRAMID OF GIZA.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hTHE LOCATION
OF THE TERRA-COTTA ARMY SITE

\hIS ALMOST A MILE AWAY FROM
THE EMPEROR’S BURIAL MOUND.

♪

\hBECAUSE OF THE DISTANCE
FROM QIN SHI HUANG’S TOMB,

\hARCHAEOLOGISTS SUSPECTED
THERE WAS MORE TO THE SITE

THAN THE LIFE-SIZE CLAY SOLDIERS

\h\h\h\hTHEY UNCOVERED IN ONE
OF SEVERAL PITS BELOW GROUND.

THEIR INVESTIGATIONS LED
\h\h\hTO THE CONCLUSION

THAT THE SOLDIERS SERVED AS
BODYGUARDS FOR QIN SHI HUANG

IN THE AFTERLIFE.

\hAndrew Schonebaum:
SOME SCHOLARS THINK

THAT THEY ARE DEFENDING IT.

\h\h\h\hSOME THINK THAT THEY ARE
A REPRESENTATION OF THE RETINUE

\hTHAT QIN SHI HUANG WOULD HAVE
TRAVELED AROUND HIS EMPIRE WITH.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

Yuan: OUR INVESTIGATION
\h\h\h\h\h\hOF THE SITE

REVEALED IT TO BE
\hEXTREMELY LARGE.

IN THE FIRST PIT,

WE FOUND A LARGE NUMBER
\h\h\h\hOF CLAY FIGURES,

\h\h\h\h\hMOSTLY INFANTRYMEN,
SOME CHARIOTEERS, AND HORSES,

ABOUT 6,000 OF THEM.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

Shen Maosheng, translated:
\h\h\h\h\h\hTHE DISCOVERY

OF THE TERRA-COTTA ARMY

\h\h\h\hHELPED US UNDERSTAND
A GREAT DEAL ABOUT THE TIME.

ALL OF THE CLAY FIGURES
\h\hWERE VERY REALISTIC,

SO BY STUDYING THEM, WE LEARNED
MUCH ABOUT THE QIN MILITARY,

\h\hTHE POLITICAL SITUATION,
EVEN THE CLOTHING THEY WORE.

[BATTLE CRIES]

\h\h\h\hNarrator: DURING
THE THIRD CENTURY B.C.,

THE REGION WE NOW CALL CHINA
\hWAS A BLOODY BATTLEGROUND.

\h\h\h\h\h\hWITH THE COLLAPSE OF
THE CENTURIES-OLD ZHOU DYNASTY,

\h\hSEVEN STATES ERUPTED IN
ENDLESS WARS FOR SUPREMACY.

♪

THE BATTLES WENT ON FOR DECADES.

♪

\hFINALLY, BY 221 B.C.,
UNDER RULER YING ZHENG,

\h\h\hTHE QIN DEFEATED
ALL THE OTHER STATES.

AND THE REASONS FOR HIS SUCCESS
CAN BE FOUND IN THE INNOVATIONS

THAT PRODUCED HIS REMARKABLE
\h\h\h\h\hARMY OF THE DEAD.

\h\h\hTHE WORLD HAS
NEVER SEEN ANYTHING

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hQUITE LIKE
THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS.

THE FIGURES ARE TALL
AND WEAR EXPRESSIONS

\h\hTHAT REVEAL THE IMPOSING
CHARACTER AND FIERCE RESOLVE

\h\h\hOF THE LEGENDARY
QIN DYNASTY SOLDIERS.

Shen: LOOKING AT THEM
\h\h\h\h\hINDIVIDUALLY

AND IN THEIR MILITARY FORMATION,

YOU GET A REAL APPRECIATION FOR
THE STRENGTH OF THE QIN ARMY.

\h\hTHEY’RE EXTRAORDINARY, AND
IT’S NO WONDER THAT WITH THEM

QIN SHI HUANG CONQUERED
\h\h\hTHE OTHER STATES.

\h\h\h\h\hNarrator: PIT ONE
OF THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS

DISPLAYS THE BATTLE FORMATION
\h\h\h\h\hOF THE QIN MILITARY.

THE FIRST THREE ROWS CONSIST
\hOF ARCHERS FACING FORWARD.

♪

\h\h\hBEHIND THEM STAND
INFANTRYMEN IN 38 ROWS,

POISED TO STRIKE UPON
THE COMMANDER’S ORDER.

♪

\hTHE FLANKS ARE DEFENDED
BY TROOPS ON THE PERIPHERY

FACING OUTWARD, WATCHING FOR
THREATS FROM ANY DIRECTION.

♪

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hPIT ONE CONTAINS
A WELL-ORGANIZED INFANTRY CORPS

OF 6,000 MEN.

♪

THE WARRIORS ONCE HELD WEAPONS
\h\h\hBEFITTING THEIR DUTIES,

AND THE SHAPES OF THEIR HANDS
\h\h\hALL DIFFER ACCORDINGLY.

♪

THESE ARE SPEARS AND DAGGER-AXES
USED BY THE INFANTRYMEN.

CROSSBOWS AND BRONZE ARROWS
\h\h\h\hALLOWED THE WARRIORS

TO ATTACK ENEMIES
\hFROM A DISTANCE.

♪

DURING THE EXCAVATION,

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hONE DISCOVERY TOOK
THE ARCHAEOLOGISTS BY SURPRISE.

\hDESPITE BEING BURIED
FOR OVER 2,000 YEARS,

THE SWORDS OF THE INFANTRYMEN

WERE STILL IN PRISTINE,
\h\hRUST-FREE CONDITION.

THE QIN DYNASTY’S METALWORK WAS
HIGHLY ADVANCED FOR ITS TIME.

[SHOUTING]

\h\h\hRESEARCHERS EXAMINED
WHY THE WEAPONS MAINTAINED

THEIR KEEN CUTTING EDGE
\h\h\h\hAND DIDN’T RUST.

\h\hHou: WE DID TESTS
TO SEE WHY THE SWORDS

\h\h\h\h\h\hWERE STILL SHARP
AFTER BEING BURIED SO LONG.

WE FOUND EVIDENCE
OF CHROMIUM OXIDE

ON THE SWORD BLADES,

WHICH PREVENTS THEM
\h\h\hFROM RUSTING.

\h\hIT’S IMPRESSIVE THAT CHINA
HAD DEVELOPED THIS TECHNOLOGY

OVER 1,000 YEARS BEFORE
\h\h\hTHE WESTERN WORLD.

AFTER ALL, GERMANY DIDN’T
\h\h\hDISCOVER THIS METHOD

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hUNTIL THE 1930s,
AND AMERICA NOT UNTIL THE 1950s.

\h\h\hNarrator: BONDING
A CHROMIUM OXIDE COATING

TO A METAL SURFACE

\h\h\hREQUIRES TEMPERATURES
OF 1,400 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT

\h\h\hTO TOUGHEN IT
AND MAKE IT DURABLE.

[SHOUTING]

\h\hBECAUSE OF THIS
ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY,

THE QIN STATE’S WEAPONRY AND
ITS SUPERIOR TROOP STRENGTH

GAVE ITS FIGHTERS AN ADVANTAGE
\h\h\h\h\h\hOVER THEIR ENEMIES

ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

[SHOUTING]

\hTHE INITIAL EXCAVATION OF
PIT ONE TOOK OVER TWO YEARS.

DURING THAT TIME,

\hTHE ARCHAEOLOGISTS UNCOVERED
TWO MORE PITS IN THE VICINITY.

PIT TWO IS LOCATED ABOUT
\h\h60 FEET FROM PIT ONE

AND IS SMALLER IN SIZE.

BUT MEASURING 136 YARDS WIDE
\h\h\h\hAND 107 YARDS LONG,

IT’S STILL THREE TIMES LARGER
\h\h\h\h\hTHAN A SOCCER FIELD.

THE FIGURES AND WEAPONS HERE
\h\h\h\hDIFFER FROM PIT ONE.

Shen: PIT TWO CONTAINS
A VARIETY OF SOLDIERS,

INCLUDING ARCHERS
\hAND CHARIOTEERS,

\hCOMPARED TO PIT ONE, WHICH
CONTAINS MAINLY INFANTRYMEN.

Narrator: AFTER 20 MONTHS SPENT
REMOVING EARTH AND TIMBERS,

ARCHEOLOGISTS FOUND PIT TWO

TO BE FULL OF CHARIOTS,
ARCHERS, AND CAVALRYMEN.

SOLDIERS WITH CROSSBOWS STOOD
\h\hIN FORMATION AT THE FRONT,

\hWHILE CAVALRYMEN WERE
POSITIONED BEHIND THEM.

FLANKED TO THE SIDE
\hWAS A MIXED ARRAY

OF MID-SIZED CHARIOTS
\h\h\hAND INFANTRYMEN,

WITH THREE ARMORED MEN PLACED IN
EACH OF THE FOUR-HORSE CHARIOTS.

♪

\h\h\h\hARCHAEOLOGISTS ESTIMATE
THE NUMBER OF HORSES IN PIT TWO

TO BE OVER 500.

THE HORSE FIGURES
REVEALED A FEATURE

PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN TO EXPERTS.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

Xu Weimin, translated: WE FOUND
THE HORSE SADDLES IN THIS PIT

TO BE VERY WELL DECORATED.

PUTTING A SADDLE ON A HORSE

\h\h\hMAKES FOR MORE
COMFORTABLE RIDING,

AND IT ALSO GIVES YOU
\h\h\h\h\hAN ADVANTAGE

WHEN YOU’RE FIGHTING IN BATTLE.

Narrator: BEFORE THIS DISCOVERY,

SCHOLARS THOUGHT THAT SADDLES
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWERE FIRST USED

IN THE HAN DYNASTY, THE EMPIRE
\h\h\h\hTHAT FOLLOWED THE QIN.

SADDLES WERE KNOWN TO GREATLY
\hIMPROVE THE SPEED, MOBILITY,

AND TACTICAL STRATEGY
\h\hOF THE CAVALRYMEN.

♪

ANOTHER INNOVATION
\hFOUND IN PIT TWO

INVOLVED THE CROSSBOWMEN
\h\hIN THE FRONT RANKS.

\h\hTHEIR POWERFUL WEAPONS
HAD AN AUTOMATIC TRIGGER,

WHICH MAY HAVE BEEN THE REASON

FOR THE QIN ARMY’S
SUCCESS IN BATTLE.

♪

\h\h\hSOME EXPERTS THINK
THE CROSSBOW HAD A RANGE

TWICE THAT OF TODAY’S
MODERN ASSAULT RIFLES.

\h\h\h\h\hDURING BATTLE,
SOLDIERS WITH CROSSBOWS

MUST HAVE SHOT BRONZE ARROWS
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hCONTINUOUSLY

FROM THE FRONT LINES,

BOMBARDING THE ENEMY FORCES
FROM AS MUCH AS A MILE AWAY.

♪

LATER RESEARCH HAS FOUND THAT
THE TRIGGERS OF THE CROSSBOWS

HAD STANDARDIZED PARTS.

THIS WOULD ALLOW SOLDIERS
\h\h\h\hTO QUICKLY REPLACE

BROKEN OR DEFECTIVE TRIGGERS
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWITH A SPARE

WHILE ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

\h\h\h\h\hXu: THIS WAS
THE EARLIEST INSTANCE

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF CHINA
STANDARDIZING WEAPONS.

WE THINK OF STANDARDIZATION
\h\h\h\hAS A MODERN CONCEPT.

BUT EXAMINING THESE WEAPONS
\h\h\hFROM THE QIN DYNASTY,

\h\hIT’S CLEAR THEY WERE
TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED

IN TERMS OF PRODUCTION.

\h\h\h\h\hSO, SCHOLARS NOW SAY
THE QIN DYNASTY WAS THE FIRST

\h\h\h\hTO MAKE WEAPONS
WITH REPLACEABLE PARTS.

Narrator: SYSTEMIZATION WAS NOT
LIMITED TO THE CROSSBOW.

MOST OTHER WEAPONS,

\h\hINCLUDING BRONZE ARROWHEADS,
SPEARS, SWORDS, AND DAGGER-AXES,

WERE STANDARDIZED AS WELL.

IT MEANT THAT QIN SOLDIERS
\h\hWOULD NOT BE HAMPERED

BY BROKEN WEAPONS
\hDURING BATTLE--

A KEY FACTOR TO THEIR SUCCESS.

[SHOUTING]

♪

WHILE PITS ONE AND TWO CONTAIN

THOUSANDS OF INFANTRYMEN
\h\h\h\hAND CAVALRYMEN,

PIT THREE IS THE SMALLEST

AND HOUSES THE ARMY’S
HIGH-RANKING OFFICERS.

THIS SEPARATE COMMAND POST
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWAS UNUSUAL.

TODAY’S MODERN WARFARE FEATURES
SUPERIOR OFFICERS ISSUING ORDERS

FROM A COMMAND POST
\hBEHIND THE LINES.

\hBUT THIS WAS RARE
IN ANCIENT BATTLES,

WHERE STRATEGIES WERE DIFFERENT.

\h\h\h\hShen: BACK THEN,
MOST MILITARY COMMANDERS

LED TROOPS ONTO THE BATTLEFIELD.

BUT INSTEAD, THE QIN OFFICERS
\h\h\h\h\h\hUSED THEIR SKILLS

\h\hTO ISSUE ORDERS FROM
BEHIND THE FRONT LINES.

Narrator: THE QIN DYNASTY
HAD WELL-TRAINED SOLDIERS,

\hSTATE-OF-THE-ART WEAPONS, AND
EMPLOYED BOLD MILITARY TACTICS.

THIS IS HOW EXPERTS
BELIEVE THEY FOUGHT.

[MARCHING FOOTSTEPS]

WHEN THE COMMANDING OFFICERS
\h\h\h\h\h\hGAVE THE ORDERS,

\h\h\hSOLDIERS WITH CROSSBOWS AT
THE FRONT LINES ATTACKED FIRST,

RAINING ARROWS DOWN
\h\h\hON THE ENEMY.

[ARROWS WHIZZING]

\h\h\h\h\hTHIS WOULD PLUNGE
THE ADVERSARIES INTO CHAOS,

WHILE QIN INFANTRYMEN
\h\h\hFOLLOWING BEHIND

WOULD BEGIN THEIR ADVANCE.

CHARIOTEERS AND CAVALRYMEN WOULD
THEN RUSH TO OUTFLANK THE ENEMY.

\hWITH INFANTRYMEN
CHARGING HEAD ON,

CAVALRYMEN AND CHARIOTEERS
\h\h\hUSED A PINCER ACTION

\h\h\h\h\hTO SURROUND THE ENEMY
AND CLOSE OFF ANY ESCAPE ROUTE.

THE RESULT--ANNIHILATION.

♪

WITH SUPERIOR WEAPONS
AND BRILLIANT TACTICS,

THE QIN ARMY DEFEATED
THE NEIGHBORING STATES

IN LESS THAN A DECADE,

SETTING THE STAGE FOR A NEW ERA
IN THE REGION’S HISTORY.

\h\hBUT EVEN THOUGH HE NOW
HAD VICTORY IN HIS HANDS,

YING ZHENG WOULD CRAVE
\h\h\hSOMETHING MORE.

[POUNDING DRUM]

IN 221 B.C.,

FOLLOWING THE END OF NEARLY
\h\h\hTWO CENTURIES OF WAR,

A GRAND CEREMONY TOOK PLACE
\h\hIN THE XIANYANG PALACE.

HERE, YING ZHENG,

THE 38-YEAR-OLD RULER
\h\h\h\hOF QIN STATE,

DECLARED HIMSELF SOVEREIGN

\h\h\hOVER THE LANDS OF
THE FORMER ZHOU DYNASTY.

HE ASSUMED THE NEW NAME
\h\h\h\h"QIN SHI HUANG,"

\h\h\hTHE FIRST EMPEROR
OF THE NEW QIN DYNASTY.

Schonebaum: WHEN THE KING
\h\h\hOF QIN, YING ZHENG,

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hCROWNED HIMSELF
THE FIRST EMPEROR OF THE QIN,

THAT WAS AN UNPRECEDENTED MOVE.

AND IT SHOWS THAT HE UNDERSTOOD
THE MAGNITUDE

OF WHAT HE HAD ACCOMPLISHED.

\h\h\hWang: IT SUGGESTS TO US
THAT HE NO LONGER SAW HIMSELF

MERELY AS A TERRESTRIAL KING.

BUT RATHER HE SAW HIS ROLE
\h\h\h\hAS BEING ELEVATED

TO THAT OF THE RULER
\h\h\hOF AN EMPIRE,

AND A ROLE THAT COULD BE VIEWED
PERHAPS ON COSMIC PROPORTIONS.

\h\h\hNarrator: QIN SHI HUANG
WOULD GO ON TO UNIFY HIS REALM

\h\h\h\h\hBY IMPOSING
A SERIES OF REFORMS--

ABOLISHING THE LONG-STANDING
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hFEUDAL SYSTEM,

CENTRALIZING THE LEGAL CODE,

\h\h\h\hSTANDARDIZING
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES,

INTRODUCING A COMMON CURRENCY,

\h\h\h\hAND ESTABLISHING
A SINGLE WRITING SYSTEM.

\h\h\h\hBUT DESPITE HIS
TRIUMPHANT ACHIEVEMENT,

\h\h\h\hTHERE WAS ONE GOAL
THAT ELUDED QIN SHI HUANG.

IT WAS HIS DESIRE
TO CONQUER DEATH--

\h\h\h\h\h\hTO BE IMMORTAL--
AN EMPEROR IN THE AFTERLIFE.

Wang: QIN SHI HUANG’S
PURSUIT OF IMMORTALITY

\h\h\hIS KNOWN TO US FROM
THE ACCOUNTS OF SIMA QIAN.

THIS WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN AT ALL
UNUSUAL AT THE TIME.

WHAT IS UNUSUAL, HOWEVER,

IS THE GREAT LENGTHS
\h\hTO WHICH HE WENT

\h\h\h\h\hIN ORDER TO CREATE
HIS POSTMORTEM ENVIRONMENT.

Schonebaum: THE IDEA IS CLEARLY
THAT THE DECEASED

WOULD CONTINUE TO LIVE IN DEATH
AS THEY DID IN LIFE.

AND THEY WOULD WANT THE COMFORTS
THAT THEY HAD IN LIFE.

Narrator: QIN SHI HUANG DEMANDED
THAT HIS MAUSOLEUM,

\h\hWHICH HAD BEEN
UNDER CONSTRUCTION

SINCE HE WAS 14 YEARS OLD,

\h\hREFLECT THE SCALE OF
HIS POWER AND GRANDEUR.

ANCIENT RECORDS SAY OVER 700,000
LABORERS WORKED ON THE SITE

FOR OVER THREE DECADES.

THEY CREATED A PROMINENT EARTHEN
MOUND THAT RISES TO 150 FEET,

WHILE DIGGING THE EMPEROR’S
\h\h\h\hROYAL RESTING PLACE

DEEP UNDERGROUND.

Shen: IN THE PAST,
\hPEOPLE HAVE SAID

THAT WHILE THEY WERE
\hBUILDING THE TOMB,

WORKERS DUG DOWN THROUGH
THREE SEPARATE SPRINGS,

\hWHICH WE THINK MEANS THREE
LAYERS OF UNDERGROUND WATER.

THAT’S ABOUT 85 TO 90 FEET
\h\h\h\hBELOW THE SURFACE.

Narrator: IT WAS BRUTAL,
\h\h\hBACKBREAKING WORK

THAT CAME WITH A HIGH PRICE.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS LATER DISCOVERED
MUTILATED SKELETONS

THAT TOLD A HORRIFYING STORY.

COUNTLESS WORKERS
DIED OF EXHAUSTION

AND WERE BURIED IN MASS GRAVES.

OTHERS WERE APPARENTLY KILLED
\hTO KEEP THEM FROM REVEALING

THE SECRETS AND LOCATION
\h\h\h\h\h\hOF THE TOMB.

\h\hIT TOOK 38 YEARS TO COMPLETE
THE MAUSOLEUM OF QIN SHI HUANG.

HIS ROYAL CHAMBER WAS PLACED IN
THE CENTER OF THE BURIAL MOUND.

INNER AND OUTER WALLS WERE BUILT
COMPLETE WITH WATCHTOWERS.

♪

\h\h\h\hMANY PITS CONTAINING THE
WARRIORS OF THE TERRA-COTTA ARMY

WERE ALSO LOCATED NEARBY.

♪

THE EMPEROR’S UNDERGROUND PALACE
WAS CONSTRUCTED

OVER 2,000 YEARS AGO,

BUT IT STILL AWAITS EXCAVATION.

Hou: QIN SHI HUANG’S TOMB

\h\h\h\h\hIS IN THE MIDDLE
OF THE MAUSOLEUM GROUNDS,

\hWHICH IS JUST UNDER
A SQUARE MILE IN AREA.

NO ONE KNOWS FOR CERTAIN,

\h\h\h\h\h\hBUT IT’S THOUGHT
THAT THE UNDERGROUND PALACE

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hLIES UNDER
THE EARTHEN MOUND THERE.

COMPARED TO OTHER
\hMAUSOLEUM SITES,

\h\hTHIS IS CONSIDERED TO BE
ONE OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST,

LARGEST.

Narrator: NEARLY FIVE MILLION
\h\h\h\hVISITORS COME ANNUALLY

TO SEE THE EXCAVATION SITE.

WHAT DRAWS IN MOST VISITORS IS
THE MASSIVE TERRA-COTTA ARMY.

OUT OF 8,000 LIFE-SIZED
\h\hTERRA-COTTA WARRIORS

FOUND BY EXCAVATORS,

\h\h\h\hNOT ONE OF THEM
APPEARS TO BE THE SAME.

Wang: BECAUSE OF THEIR HIGHLY
\h\h\h\hREALISTIC APPEARANCE,

\hIT IS OFTEN SAID THAT
THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS

WERE INTENDED TO BE PORTRAITS.

\h\h\hWHILE WE CANNOT ANSWER
THIS QUESTION DEFINITIVELY,

\h\hWHAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT
THEIR METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION

WAS HIGHLY MODULAR,

\h\h\h\h\hAND THAT THIS WAS WORK
CARRIED OUT BY PALACE ARTISANS.

Narrator: EXPERTS MARVEL
\h\h\h\hAT THE CREATION

OF THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS,

SAYING THEY COULD NOT
\h\h\hEASILY BE MADE,

EVEN WITH MODERN TECHNOLOGY.

SO HOW DID QIN STATE ARTISANS
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hCREATE THEM?

THIS DEMONSTRATION SHOWS
\hCONTEMPORARY ARTISANS

CREATING SIMILAR FIGURES
\hOUT OF THE LOCAL CLAY.

IF THE CLAY IS TOO WET
\h\h\h\h\hOR TOO DRY,

THE SCULPTED FIGURE
\hWOULD FALL APART.

SO BACK THEN, QIN ARTISANS
\hUSED A SPECIAL TECHNIQUE

TO CREATE THE WARRIORS.

\h\h\hIN THIS CASE,
THEY MADE CLAY ROPES

AND FORMED THE FIGURE
\hFROM BOTTOM TO TOP.

AS A RESULT, THE HOLLOW STATUES
WOULD BE LESS LIKELY TO COLLAPSE

UNDER THEIR OWN WEIGHT.

\h\hTHIS METHOD ALSO LENT ITSELF
TO INDIVIDUALIZING EACH FIGURE.

BY ADJUSTING THE THICKNESS
\h\h\h\hOF THE CLAY ROPES,

THE SCULPTORS COULD MAKE
DIFFERENT SHAPED BODIES.

ONCE THE BODIES WERE COMPLETE,

\h\hTHEY WOULD ADD THE FINISHING
TOUCHES, SUCH AS ARMOR DETAILS.

♪

\h\h\h\hCOMPLEX PARTS
SUCH AS HANDS AND FEET

WERE MADE SEPARATELY

AND DRIED BEFORE BEING
FITTED TO THE BODIES.

EXPERTS THINK THE HEADS
\h\h\h\h\hWERE NOT BASED

ON THE CRAFTSMEN’S IMAGINATION,

BUT INSTEAD MODELED
\hON REAL SOLDIERS.

♪

\hSTUDIES OF THE FIGURES SHOW
THAT NO TWO ARE EXACTLY ALIKE.

FROM THEIR FACIAL FEATURES
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND APPAREL,

\h\hIT’S POSSIBLE TO
DISCERN DIFFERENCES

IN THE WARRIORS’ AGE,
\hFUNCTION, AND RANK,

\hAS WELL AS DETERMINING WHERE
IN THE COUNTRY THEY CAME FROM.

Shen: THE FACIAL FEATURES
\h\h\h\h\hOF THE WARRIORS

REFLECT A RANGE OF PEOPLE
\h\h\h\h\hFROM THE EMPIRE,

INCLUDING THE SHANXI AREA,

THE EASTERN PART OF CHINA,
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hSZECHUAN,

EVEN THE WESTERN REGION
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF CHINA.

Narrator: IN 1999,
\hEXCAVATORS FOUND

DIFFERENT TERRA-COTTA FIGURES

\h\h\h\hIN A PIT LOCATED
NOT FAR FROM THE OTHERS.

THEY WERE IN SHARP CONTRAST
TO THE SOLDIERS AND OFFICERS

OF THE TERRA-COTTA ARMY.

\hTO BEGIN WITH, THEY’RE NOT
DRESSED IN MILITARY OUTFITS

OR WEARING ANY TYPE OF ARMOR,

\hNOR ARE THEY ALIGNED
IN A GROUP FORMATION.

♪

\h\h\h\h\hDECORATIVE WALLS
FROM THE LATER HAN DYNASTY

PROVIDE IMPORTANT CLUES.

THE BARE-CHESTED FIGURES
\hARE IN DYNAMIC POSES,

VERY DIFFERENT FROM THEIR
\h\hMILITARY COUNTERPARTS.

Shen: THE FIGURES LOOK LIKE THEY
ARE CAPTURED IN MID-PERFORMANCE.

THEY SHOW US ANOTHER SIDE OF THE
EMPEROR’S ROYAL LIFE BACK THEN.

\h\h\h\hNarrator: ROYAL LIFE
DURING QIN SHI HUANG’S REIGN

\hHAD ALL THE TRAPPINGS
OF LUXURY AND SPLENDOR.

♪

\h\h\h\hACCORDING TO
HISTORIAN SIMA QIAN,

10,000 COURT LADIES CHOSEN
FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY

LIVED IN THE EMPEROR’S PALACE.

THEY SERVED AT THE PLEASURE
\h\h\h\h\hOF QIN SHI HUANG,

\h\h\hWITH THE BEST DANCERS
PERFORMING DURING BANQUETS.

♪

AT THESE BANQUETS,
ACROBATIC TROUPES

ALSO DISPLAYED THEIR SKILLS
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hFOR THE COURT.

THEY WERE CALLED "BAIXI," A WORD
REFERRING TO ENTERTAINMENTS

THAT GAVE A HUNDRED DIFFERENT
\h\h\h\hJOYS TO THE AUDIENCE.

INCLUDED IN THE PERFORMANCES
\h\h\h\hWERE DEMONSTRATIONS

OF PHYSICAL DEXTERITY
\h\h\h\hAND STRENGTH.

♪

\h\hTHE BAIXI WERE ALSO KNOWN
TO TRAVEL TO THE BATTLEFIELDS

TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR SKILLS

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAND BOOST MORALE
AMONG THE TROOPS IN THE FIELD.

♪

\h\h\hACROBATICS IS ONE OF
THE OLDEST ARTS IN CHINA--

\h\hA TRADITION FAMOUSLY
CARRIED ON TO THIS DAY.

THE CONTINUING EXCAVATION
UNEARTHED OTHER ARTIFACTS:

ELEGANT BRONZE CRANES,
\h\hSWANS, AND GEESE,

WHICH SYMBOLIZE LONGEVITY.

\h\h\h\h\h\hIN YET ANOTHER PIT,
ARCHAEOLOGISTS FOUND STONE ARMOR

MADE FOR QIN SHI HUANG’S
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWARRIORS,

LEADING RESEARCHERS TO WONDER

\hWHAT OTHER TREASURES
WILL BE REVEALED NEXT.

\h\hAS FIRST EMPEROR OF CHINA,
QIN SHI HUANG WANTED TO ENJOY

THE COMFORTS AND TREASURES
\h\h\h\h\h\hOF HIS EMPIRE

NOT ONLY DURING HIS LIFETIME,
BUT IN THE AFTERLIFE AS WELL.

\h\h\h\h\hTHAT’S WHY HIS NEARLY
1-SQUARE-MILE MAUSOLEUM COMPLEX

\h\hCONTAINS MANY RARE
AND PRICELESS OBJECTS

FROM THROUGHOUT HIS REALM.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

Yuan: QIN SHI HUANG’S MAUSOLEUM
IS THE LARGEST

OF ALL THE ROYAL TOMBS IN CHINA.

\h\h\h\hWE FOUND IT TO BE
RELATIVELY WELL PRESERVED,

CONTAINING A RICH ARRAY
\h\h\h\h\hOF ARTIFACTS.

SO FAR, WE’VE FOUND
\h\h\hABOUT 180 PITS

FILLED WITH FASCINATING OBJECTS.

IT’S A REAL UNDERGROUND
\h\h\h\h\hTREASURE TROVE

THAT TELLS US A GREAT DEAL
\hABOUT HIM AND HIS REALM.

\hSchonebaum: WE KNOW THAT HE
SURVIVED ASSASSINATION PLOTS.

SO HE MUST’VE BEEN COGNIZANT
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF THAT FACT

THAT HIS LIFE COULD END
\h\h\h\h\hAT ANY MOMENT.

WE KNOW THAT HE TRAVELED WITH
\hA LARGE RETINUE OF SOLDIERS

WHEN HE SURVEYED HIS NEW EMPIRE,

\h\h\h\h\h\hSO AS TO PROTECT
AGAINST ASSASSINATION PLOTS.

SO, ON THE ONE HAND, IT SEEMS
\hLIKE HE WAS QUITE CONCERNED,

ALMOST OBSESSED, WITH DYING.

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND,

HE WAS LAYING SOME OF THE MOST
\h\h\h\hINTRICATE PREPARATIONS

TO GO ON LIVING AFTER DEATH.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hNarrator:
THE EMPEROR’S MAUSOLEUM

HAS YET TO BE EXCAVATED.

\h\hBUT MANY FEATURES
OF THE ELABORATE WORLD

\h\h\h\hQIN SHI HUANG HAD BUILT
UNDERGROUND HAVE BEEN UNEARTHED,

\h\h\hTHANKS TO THE WORK OF
ARCHAEOLOGISTS AND ARTISANS.

♪

THE CAREFULLY ORGANIZED EFFORT

\h\h\h\h\hTO RECONSTRUCT
THE WORLD OF THE EMPEROR

\hBEGINS WITH LABELING ARTIFACTS
AND FRAGMENTS FOUND AT THE SITE.

[SPEAKING CHINESE]

\h\hWang Dongfeng, translated:
THE LABELS HAVE TWO FUNCTIONS.

FIRST, THEY INDICATE WHERE AN
ARTIFACT WAS FOUND IN THE PIT.

\h\hSECOND, IT MAKES IT EASIER
FOR US TO FIND SIMILAR PIECES

\h\hWHILE WE’RE DOING
OUR RESTORATION WORK.

\h\hNarrator: AS PART OF
THE RESTORATION PROCESS,

\hPIECES OF THE RELICS
ARE CAREFULLY CLEANED,

\h\hUSING SPECIAL TOOLS
TO AVOID DAMAGING THEM.

♪

\hTHEN, A SPECIAL GLUE
IS DELICATELY APPLIED

TO BROKEN PORTIONS OF THE OBJECT
TO ASSURE PROPER BONDING.

THESE CRAFTSMEN KNOW THEY’RE NOT
ONLY REASSEMBLING PIECES

OF AN HISTORIC ARTIFACT,

\hBUT ALSO RESTORING
PIECES OF LOST TIME;

BRINGING THE PAST TO LIFE.

THIS IS HOW MANY
OF THE THOUSANDS

OF TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS
HAVE BEEN RECONSTRUCTED.

♪

DURING THE IMMENSE EXCAVATION
\h\h\hAND RESTORATION PROJECT,

RESEARCHERS ENCOUNTERED
\h\h\hANOTHER SURPRISE.

TODAY, THE WARRIORS APPEAR
\hREDDISH BROWN AND GRAY,

CONSISTENT WITH THE COLOR
\hOF THE CLAY IN THE AREA.

BUT IN REMOVING 2,000 YEARS
\h\h\h\h\hOF DIRT AND DEBRIS

FROM THE SURFACE OF THE FIGURES,

TRACES OF VIBRANT PAINT
\h\h\h\h\hWERE DETECTED.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HAVE CONCLUDED
THAT THE TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS

LOOKED FAR DIFFERENT WHEN THEY
\h\h\hWERE ORIGINALLY CREATED.

\hLan Desheng, translated:
THE SOLDIERS WERE PAINTED

VERY COLORFULLY.

YOU FIND TRACES OF RED, YELLOW,

GREEN, PURPLE, AND BLACK.

THE COLORS ON THIS FIGURE FADED
WHEN IT WAS EXCAVATED,

BUT WE’VE FOUND MOST SOLDIERS
\h\h\hSTILL HAVE BITS OF PAINT

ON THEIR UNIFORM COLLARS.

\h\h\hNarrator: THIS IS HOW
SOME OF THE WARRIORS LOOKED

WHEN THEY WERE FOUND
BURIED IN THE DIRT.

\h\hBUT ONCE THE FIGURES
WERE EXPOSED TO THE AIR,

THE COLORS QUICKLY DISAPPEARED,
LIKE A MIRAGE.

♪

BASED ON THE RESEARCH
\h\hOF ARCHAEOLOGISTS

WHO HAVE STUDIED THESE FIGURES
\h\h\h\h\h\hFOR OVER 40 YEARS,

THE WARRIORS WOULD HAVE
\hLOOKED VERY DIFFERENT.

♪

♪

THE FINISHED WARRIORS
\h\h\hWOULD HAVE BEEN

A SPLENDID, AWE-INSPIRING SIGHT
2,200 YEARS AGO.

♪

\h\hAFTER FORGING ONE NATION OUT
OF A CAULDRON OF WARRING STATES,

QIN SHI HUANG DID NOT RETREAT
\h\hINSIDE HIS LAVISH PALACE.

\h\h\h\h\h\hHE MADE A NUMBER OF
INSPECTION TOURS OF HIS EMPIRE,

TRAVELING UNDER THE PROTECTION
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF HIS GUARDS.

\h\h\h\h\h\hJeffrey Riegel:
ON AT LEAST FIVE OCCASIONS,

THE FIRST EMPEROR MADE
A TOUR OF HIS EMPIRE.

\h\h\h\hIT SEEMS IN FACT THAT
HE REALLY ENJOYED DOING THIS,

\h\h\h\hTHAT HE PREFERRED
GETTING OUT OF THE CAPITAL

AND SURVEYING THE LANDS
\hTHAT HE HAD CONQUERED.

I THINK IT’S PART
\hOF HUMAN NATURE

TO WANT TO SEE, IN EFFECT,
\h\h\h\h\h\hWHAT YOU OWN.

♪

Narrator: THIS BRONZE CHARIOT
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hFOUND IN PIT TWO

\hSHOWS THE REMARKABLE CRAFT
OF THE QIN DYNASTY ARTISANS.

\h\hIT’S A HALF-SIZED REPLICA
OF THE ONE QIN SHI HUANG RODE

DURING HIS JOURNEYS.

\hHou: THE BRONZE CHARIOT
REALLY IS THE BEST RELIC,

THE CROWN JEWEL OF THEM ALL,

ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU
\hCONSIDER ITS SIZE

AND THE TECHNOLOGY INVOLVED
\h\h\h\hIN ITS CONSTRUCTION.

\h\h\hIT CONSISTS OF
ABOUT 3,000 PIECES.

EVEN USING MODERN PROCESSES
\h\h\h\h\h\h\hLIKE WELDING,

YOU CAN SEE IT WOULD TAKE
\h\hA GREAT DEAL OF EFFORT

TO BUILD IT.

\h\h\h\hNarrator: ORIGINALLY,
TWO BRONZE CHARIOTS WERE FOUND

COMPLETELY SMASHED IN A PIT

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hJUST 20 YARDS FROM
QIN SHI HUANG’S BURIAL CHAMBER.

THIS SMALLER VEHICLE
\hWITH A HIGH CANOPY

\hIS A HALF-SIZE MODEL
OF THE ESCORT CHARIOT

WHICH RODE AHEAD OF THE EMPEROR
IN A PROCESSION.

TOGETHER, THE PRESENCE
OF THESE TWO CHARIOTS

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hMAY REPRESENT
QIN SHI HUANG’S EXPECTATION

THAT HE WOULD BE ABLE
\hTO CONTINUE TOURING

HIS UNDERGROUND EMPIRE
\h\hIN THE AFTERLIFE.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hNarrator:
THE FASCINATION GENERATED

\h\h\h\h\h\hBY QIN SHI HUANG’S
TERRA-COTTA WARRIORS CONTINUES

\hDECADES AFTER THEY WERE
FIRST DISCOVERED IN 1974.

\h\h\h\h\h\hBUT AT THE SITE OF
THE FIRST EMPEROR’S MAUSOLEUM,

ONE GREAT MYSTERY LINGERS.

THOUGH HUNDREDS OF RELICS HAVE
BEEN DISCOVERED AND EXCAVATED,

QIN SHI HUANG’S BURIAL CHAMBER
\h\h\hHAS REMAINED UNEXPLORED.

\h\h\hYuan: WE DON’T KNOW WHAT’S
ACTUALLY INSIDE THE BURIAL SITE.

\h\hIN HIS WRITINGS, SIMA QIAN
DESCRIBES IT IN GREAT DETAIL,

\h\h\hMENTIONING THAT THERE ARE
DEPICTIONS OF THE CONSTELLATIONS

IN THE CEILING OVERHEAD,
\h\h\hAND ON THE FLOOR,

\h\h\h\h\hRECREATIONS OF RIVERS
AND OCEANS FILLED WITH MERCURY.

Narrator: SINCE SIMA QIAN
\h\h\h\hWROTE HIS ACCOUNT

\h\hA CENTURY AFTER
THE EMPEROR’S DEATH,

SCHOLARS HAVE DOUBTED
\h\h\hHIS DESCRIPTIONS

OF THE BURIAL CHAMBER.

BUT RECENT STUDIES HAVE FOUND

HIGH CONCENTRATIONS OF MERCURY
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hAT THE SITE.

\hHou: SCIENTISTS USED
MODERN REMOTE SENSORS

\hAND SPECTRAL ANALYSIS MACHINES
TO INVESTIGATE THE BURIAL SITE.

AND WHAT THEY FOUND
\h\hWAS SURPRISING.

\h\hTHE LEVEL OF MERCURY
IN THE SOIL AT THE SITE

MEASURED 20 TIMES HIGHER THAN IN
THE AREA SURROUNDING THE SITE.

Narrator: ONE ANCIENT METHOD OF
PRESERVING BODIES AFTER DEATH

\hINVOLVES DEEP BURIALS
IN AIRTIGHT CONDITIONS.

\h\h\hTHIS KEEPS OXYGEN
FROM REACHING THE CORPSE

AND SLOWS DOWN DECOMPOSITION.

\h\h\h\hWHEN THIS TOMB IN
HUNAN PROVINCE WAS OPENED,

ARCHAEOLOGISTS MADE
\hA REMARKABLE FIND.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hINSIDE WAS
A HAN DYNASTY NOBLEWOMAN

KNOWN AS THE LADY OF DAI.

\h\hHER BODY HAD BEEN BURIED
NEARLY 40 FEET UNDERGROUND.

\h\hNO ONE ANTICIPATED
A DISCOVERY LIKE THIS.

THOUGH HER DEATH OCCURRED
\h\h\h\h21 CENTURIES AGO,

THE LADY OF DAI’S BODY
\h\hIS WELL-PRESERVED.

MOST OF HER INTERNAL ORGANS
\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hARE INTACT,

AND BLOOD STILL REMAINS
\h\h\h\h\hIN HER VEINS.

HER SKIN IS MOIST AND ELASTIC,
\h\h\hLIKE THAT OF THE LIVING.

HER DISCOVERY LED RESEARCHERS
\h\hTO CONSIDER A NEW THEORY.

[SPEAKING JAPANESE]

Suruma Kazuyuki, translated:
\h\h\hWE THINK IT’S POSSIBLE

AND HE WAS BURIED
DEEP IN THE EARTH.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hNarrator:
MORE CLUES REPRESENTING

\hHOW THE EMPEROR’S BODY
MAY HAVE BEEN PRESERVED

APPEARED IN OTHER
\hPARTS OF CHINA.

THIS IS A SHROUD, MADE OF JADE,

FOR A KING OF THE HAN DYNASTY
\h\hWHO DIED 2,000 YEARS AGO.

Kazuyuki: IF THE EMPEROR
\h\h\hWAS IN FACT BURIED

IN A SUIT OF JADE ARMOR,

IT’S POSSIBLE THE DECOMPOSITION
PROCESS HAS SLOWED DOWN.

THIS METHOD OF BURIAL WAS COMMON
AMONG THE QIN DYNASTY ROYALTY,

\hSO WE CAN INFER THAT
PERHAPS QIN SHI HUANG

COULD HAVE BEEN BURIED THIS WAY.

Narrator: 210 B.C.

\h\hQIN SHI HUANG, ON ANOTHER
INSPECTION TOUR OF HIS EMPIRE,

WAS STRUGGLING WITH ILLNESS.

♪

\h\hDESPITE HIS SEARCH
FOR THE ELIXIR OF LIFE

THAT HE BELIEVED WOULD
GRANT HIM IMMORTALITY,

HE DIED AT 50 YEARS OLD.

♪

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hNOW BEGAN
HIS LAST EARTHLY JOURNEY

\h\h\h\hBACK TO XIAN AND
HIS FINAL RESTING PLACE.

\h\h\h\hHE HAD CREATED
A SMALL-SCALE VERSION

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hOF HIS EMPIRE
AND HIS PALACE UNDERGROUND,

WHERE HE COULD OVERSEE THE WORLD
HE UNIFIED FOR ETERNITY.

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hIT HAD TAKEN
SOME 700,000 WORKERS 38 YEARS

TO BUILD QIN SHI HUANG’S
\h\h\h\h\h\hROYAL TOMB.

♪

[CREAKING]

♪

THEN, IN 210 B.C., THE EMPEROR,

TOGETHER WITH HIS MANY PRICELESS
TREASURES, HIS CHILDLESS WIVES,

AND HIS DREAMS OF IMMORTALITY,

\h\h\hWAS SEALED IN
HIS BURIAL CHAMBER.

[CREAKING]

HISTORIAN SIMA QIAN,

\hWRITING IN HIS RECORDS
OF THE GRAND HISTORIAN,

\h\hDESCRIBED IN DETAIL
WHAT THE EMPEROR’S TOMB

WAS TO HAVE CONTAINED.

Man: "THE SUN, MOON, AND STARS
\h\h\h\hWERE DRAWN IN THE SKY

TO BLESS AND PROTECT
\h\h\hTHE AFTERLIFE.

\h\hUNDERNEATH THE STARS
WAS A MINIATURE VERSION

OF GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES.

MERCURY FILLED THE RIVER
\hSO AS NEVER TO DRY UP,

AND TORCHES BURNING MERMAID OIL
WILL NEVER BE BLOWN OUT."

♪

Narrator: QIN SHI HUANG
\h\h\hHAD UNIFIED CHINA

FOR THE FIRST TIME, ESTABLISHING
A NEW FORM OF GOVERNMENT,

\h\h\h\hUNIFORM LAWS,
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES,

AND A SINGLE WRITING SYSTEM.

\hANCIENT HISTORIANS SAY THE
UNDERGROUND WORLD HE CREATED

\h\hREFLECTED THE GRANDEUR
OF HIS MANY ACHIEVEMENTS.

BUT FOR NOW THERE’S NO WAY
\h\h\hTO KNOW FOR CERTAIN

WHETHER THE ACCOUNTS DESCRIBING
QIN SHI HUANG’S TOMB ARE TRUE.

\h\h\hTHE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAS
STEADFASTLY REFUSED TO EXCAVATE

THE FIRST EMPEROR’S
\h\hBURIAL CHAMBER--

A POSITION AT ODDS

\h\h\h\h\h\h\hWITH WHAT MANY IN
THE GENERAL PUBLIC WOULD PREFER.

Hou: THERE ARE NO PLANS
\h\h\h\h\h\hTO EXCAVATE

THE UNDERGROUND PALACE
\h\h\h\hIN THE FUTURE,

BECAUSE THE EXCAVATION ITSELF

\h\h\h\hCOULD DESTROY WHAT
WE’RE TRYING TO PRESERVE.

\h\h\h\h\hYuan: THOUGH WE’RE NOT
EXCAVATING THE TOMB AT PRESENT,

\h\hWE MIGHT CONSIDER
WHETHER IN THE FUTURE

WE COULD USE NEW FORMS
\h\h\h\hOF TECHNOLOGY

\h\h\h\h\hTO INVESTIGATE
THE UNDERGROUND PALACE.

\h\h\h\h\hIN MY VIEW,
I’D SAY IT’S POSSIBLE.

Narrator: FOR NOW, WE CAN ONLY
\hPEER INTO THE EMPEROR’S TOMB

THROUGH ANCIENT WRITINGS
\h\hAND OUR IMAGINATION.

DURING HIS LIFE, QIN SHI HUANG
\h\hHUNGERED FOR IMMORTALITY.

AND NOW, OVER 2,000 YEARS
\h\h\h\h\hAFTER HIS DEATH,

\h\h\h\h\h\hTHANKS TO THE WORK
OF ARCHAEOLOGISTS AND ARTISANS

AND THE UNFORGETTABLE
\h\h\hTERRA-COTTA ARMY

THAT STILL GUARDS HIS MEMORY,

HE’S ACHIEVED IT.