The world's largest jigsaw puzzle

The following day, we drove out to the site of the Terra Cotta Soldiers mausoleum. I was totally impressed with this place. There are three main buildings, each covering three separate excavation sites. The first building is the largest, and held the bulk of the "army". Each statue is made with details down to the fingernails, and the facial expression on each of the soldiers is different. Each statue held some sort of weapon, and the hairstyles indicated the rank of that soldier. The warriors definitely looked ready for battle.

The amazing thing is that these statues weren't discovered in tact. They had been through flood, fire, tremblers, and other natural disasters. The tunnels that they were buried in were made of wood and would eventually collapse. The wooden pillars and roofs are now petrified, and the soldiers were all crushed underneath the weight of the earth. So archaeologists have to now go through and reassemble the warriors. About 7,000 in all. All in pieces. They apparently have software to help them match pieces, but it is a daunting task. That's why I think of this as the world's largest jigsaw puzzle.

The mausoleum also had displays of fully assembled soldiers as part of their exhibit. There were soldiers in chariots, and terra cotta horses (much to Lili's delight), and everything had been made to be exactly like a real life army. We were all impressed with the craftsmanship as well as the great lengths the emperor had gone through in order to protect his tomb.

Main building of the site. Seemingly endless row of soldiers

Me holding a replica of a soldier