Despite the fact that the Terracotta Army stood on feet of clay, it was an amazing fighting force. Chinese warriors have been armed with new weapons capable of killing opponents with one arrow, according to a new TV documentary.
Scientists were able to reproduce the arrowheads that existed in 200 BC, at the time of the creation of the Terracotta Army, and test them on crossbows of that time.
The arrow pierced the armor of that era with ease, like oil. Historian Mike Loads, an expert on ancient weapons, told the publication: "These crossbows were two millennia ahead of their time."
The sculptures, which are estimated by historians to be about 2,200 years old, were discovered in 1974 at the burial site of Emperor Qin Shi Huang in the Chinese province of Shaanxi. The soldiers were equipped with real weapons, not replicas. Apparently, the fighters were charged with protecting the emperor in the afterlife.
Eight thousand ancient soldiers were found buried in three locations that covered a total of over 22 square miles - a much larger area than previously thought. Many were painted in bright colors such as pink, red, green and blue.
The forthcoming documentary "New Secrets of the Terracotta Warriors" tells the story of how bright colors were found by German researchers.
Bill Locke, one of the executive producers, told the British newspaper: “When archaeologists excavated them, they found traces of pigment in the soil around them. They were trying to assess whether these paints were synthetically created 2,000 years ago, or whether they were natural."
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In total, the researchers discovered three pit-tombs, which are believed to contain 8000 figures of archers, infantrymen, chariots, officers and acrobats, plus 130 chariots with 520 horses, as well as 150 cavalry horses, recreated in life size.
The height of the statues reaches 1.8 meters, and the weight is 181 kilograms. The faces of the warriors have been recreated to the smallest detail and no figure is alike.
The tomb was looted less than five years after the death of Emperor Qin Shihuang by the enemy army, which set fire to the tomb, thereby damaging most of the statues.