The Bronze Chariots and Horses of Emperor Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum
秦始皇陵铜车马
In December 1980,two sets of large painted bronze chariots and horses were unearthed 20 meters west of the mount of Emperor Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum. They were listed as No. 1 and No. 2 respectively according to their discovery. They were then enclosed in a wooden coffin and buried in a pit seven meters deep. When excavated, the chariots and horses were seriously damaged due to the decayed wooden coffin and the collapse of earthen layers. No. 2 bronze chariot and horses were found broken int0 1,555 pieces when excavated .After two and a half years of careful and painstaking restoration by archaeologists and other experts, they were formally open to the public on October l, 1983. No. 1 bronze chariot and horses were also open to the public in 1988. The bronze chariots drawn by four horses, with a single shaft, were placed one before the other vertically. The front chariot, i. e. No. 1 Chariot, was supposed to be " High Chariot" in the ancient time. The back chariot, i. e. No. 2 Chariot, was named "Security Chariot". It has a front room and a rear room, between which there is a partition. The front room is for the charioteer and the rear one for the master. In the rear compartment, there is a window on either side of the carriage as well as in the front with a door at the back. The windows and doors could close and open easily. The small holes on the windows were used for ventilation. On top of the chariot, there was an elliptical umbrella-like canopy. The chariot was colour-painted against a white background. No. 2 Chariot was fitted with more than l,500 pieces of silver and gold and other ornaments, looking luxurious, splendid and graceful. Probably it was used for Emperor Qin Shihuang's soul to go out on inspection. No.1 Chariot was equipped with crossbows, arrow heads, shields and the charioteer wore a hat, which shows that this chariot was employed to protect the No. 2 Chariot be- hind. The bronze chariots and horses were the earliest and most exquisitely made bronze valuables. They enjoy the highest class and have the most complete harnessing wares. They are also the largest bronze ware discovered in the history of world archaeology. The excavation of the bronze chariots and horses provides extremely valuable material and data for the textual research of the metallurgical technique, mechanism of chariots and technological modeling of the Qin Dynasty.
1980年12月在秦始皇陵西侧20米处，发掘出土了两乘大型彩绘铜车马，按照发现的顺序，被编为一号和二号铜车马。当时皆被埋在7米深的坑里，外面用一个木椁装着。出土时，因木椁腐朽，土层塌陷，两辆铜车马都残破严重，其中二号铜车马已碎成1555片，经过考古工作者和各方面专家两年半细心艰苦的修复，二号铜车马于1983年10月1日正式对外展出，一号铜车马也于1988年正式展出。这两乘车都是四马单辕，呈前后纵向排列，前面的一号车应为古代的“高车”。二号车叫“安车”，分为前御室和后乘室。两室之间隔以车墙。赶车的人坐在前御室，主人坐在后乘室。乘室前面及左右两侧有三个车窗，后面留门，门窗都可以灵活启闭，窗上的小孔可以调节空气。车上有椭圆形伞状车盖。此车通体施以白色为底色的彩绘，二号车配有1500余件金银构件和饰物，显得华丽富贵？它可能是供秦始皇出游时乘坐的。一号车上配备有弓弩、箭头、盾牌，驾车者带有官帽，这说明此车是用来保护后面二号车的安全的。铜车马是我国时代最早，驾具最全，级别最高，制作最精的青铜器珍品，也是世界考古发现的最大青铜器。它的出土，为考证秦代冶金技术、车辆结构、工艺造型等提供了极为珍贵的实物资料。