In this activity, students will examine bronze chariots and horses, charioteer figures, and related objects found in the Pit of Chariots and Horses, a small, but important part of the elaborate tomb complex of China's First Emperor, Emperor Qin Shihuang (259-221 BCE). Although the complex is perhaps better known for the discovery of the Terracotta Army, a group of approximately 7,000 life-size terracotta warriors and horses, the bronze objects also add to our understanding of the surviving material culture from the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE), a significant period in Chinese history. These objects are some of the best archaeological evidence researchers have for understanding the spiritual beliefs, military practices, and values of the ruler responsible for unifying China for the first time in its history.

This collection was created in collaboration between the Emperor Qin Shihuang Mausoleum Site Museum and the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

Tags: funerary practices, spiritual beliefs, Chinese, ancient history, world, asia, xi’an, cross-cultural companion, terracotta army, bronze, chariot, project zero