Qin Shi Huangdi's Terracotta Army: Symbolism and Realism

Discovery and Overview of the Mausoleum

In 1974, one of the greatest archaeological finds in the field of Chinese history was discovered in the Shaanxi province of Lintong. The structure was that of the burial chamber of the first Chinese emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi (r. 246–210 B.C.). The tomb was massive and sprawling, and according to a 2009 article on Planetware, uncovering its many treasures remains a work in progress ("Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huangdi: Terracotta Army," 2009). Ironically, the Mausoleum would never have been discovered at all had not some local peasants been digging for water — much like the Dead Sea Scrolls, it was also discovered entirely by chance.

The relatively recent nature of the discovery and the fact that the archaeological site is still under excavation may be one reason there is comparatively limited research on the topic. Some authors, such as the anonymous scholar on Planetware — a site devoted to discussing archaeological finds — take a strictly factual approach, while scholar Ladislav Kesner's 1995 article "Likeness of No One: (Re)presenting the First Emperor's Army," published in The Art Bulletin, attempts to contextualize what the work's symbolic and religious meaning would have meant to Chinese society during the time of the Mausoleum's construction.

The Terracotta Army and Scholarly Debate

Specifically, the figures known as the "terracotta army" — a series of warrior figures enclosed in the structure along with the dead emperor — fascinate Kesner. He argues that rather than being stereotyped and strictly symbolic figures, as they initially appear, the terracotta warriors are in fact meant to be realistic depictions of individual figures from the Chinese army of the time.

"Close to the tumulus which, according to historical accounts, should contain the tomb of the First Emperor itself, the terracotta army, situated in three subterranean pits, is the most conspicuous part of the entire burial compound, which also includes remains of a funerary precinct with auxiliary burials, sacrificial pits, and many other structures. According to the commonly accepted explanation, the underground army was created as a replica of the Qin army: clay soldiers and horses represent Qin Shi Huang's army and stand in place of the real soldiers who could not have been actually buried" with their master (Kesner 1995, p. 115). The symbolic function of these soldiers, some scholars believe, was to guard the corpse of the Emperor, much as the actual dead bodies of servants and attendants were interred with Egyptian pharaohs.

However, according to Kesner, questions and controversies still rage as to the nature of the figures' realistic depiction of the "real" Chinese army. Kesner notes that the majority of scholars point out "that the clay warriors' faces conform to a certain number of stereotypes" and are "unwilling to regard them as representations of individuals or to consider the Qin terracotta figures as portraiture" (Kesner 1995, p. 115). Kesner disagrees with this majority view and believes that the figures were likely intentional representations of real individuals. He contends that historical evidence suggests "that the figures were modeled after living soldiers, that they were actual portraits of individual warriors" (Kesner 1995, p. 115).

Works Cited

Ladislav, Kesner. "Likeness of No One: (Re)presenting the First Emperor's Army." The Art Bulletin. 77.1 (Mar., 1995), pp. 115–132.

Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huangdi. Planetware. 2009. July 2, 2009.