Ch4 Secret History - New Secrets Of The Terracotta Warriors (2013)

New Secrets Of The Terracotta Warriors

The discovery of China's Terracotta Army in 1974 captured the imagination of the world. But that first dig only revealed a fraction of this enormous and extraordinary treasure. Since then, scientists have resumed work on the site, and their research has turned up a series of new discoveries about the warriors and the people who made them over two millennia ago. With exclusive access to pioneering research conducted by UCL and the Terracotta Army Museum, this documentary reveals those new secrets. The Terracotta Army lay unknown and undiscovered for over 2200 years. The figures were part of the greatest necropolis ever built: the grave of the legendary First Emperor, who conquered all his rivals, unified China and left it with one language, currency and set of laws. The scientists' and archaeologists' new discoveries paint a vivid picture of that world. Amongst the many new findings, the film reveals the true extent of the site and number of warriors and that the weapons carried by the warriors were full military grade, rather than replicas: they were designed to kill as efficiently in the afterlife as in this one. New insights into how the figures were made, including revolutionary 3D computer modelling of the warriors' heads, challenges the traditional explanation and changes our understanding of how sophisticated technology and society were in ancient China.

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