'Terracotta Army, the Warriors of Xian' exhibition a huge hit in Madrid

The exhibition, "Terracotta Army, the Warriors of Xi'an" has become one of the main tourist attractions in the Spanish capital Madrid with over 100,000 visitors in just four months. The exhibition, which opened in November 2013, has been so successful that the Madrid Local Authority has decided to extend it until April 20, meaning it will be another attraction open during the forthcoming Easter holidays. Located in the Fernan Gomez Theater in the heart of Madrid, the Terracotta Army exhibition coincides with the 40th anniversary of one of the most important archeological discoveries of all time: that of over 8,000 terracotta soldiers, along with 130 chariots and almost 700 horses, depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, namely the first Emperor of China's Qin dynasty. Although none of the original warriors is on display in Madrid, visitors can see full scale replicas of 150 figures, including 90 warriors, horses and equipment, discovered in Pit One of the excavations. These are surrounded by a diorama aimed at giving the impression of how these pieces appear in their original setting, along with another 70 reproductions, including government officials, weapons, jewels, tools and art to give a true sense of life in ancient China. Tuesday saw a round table event held at the Fernan Gomez theater to celebrate the success of the event and Javier Sierra, the journalist, writer and commissioner of the exhibition highlighted that apart from the huge scale of the discovery, what makes the Terracotta Army truly special is that each of the 8,000 soldiers is different and they thus help give a picture of the different people living in China at the time. The Terracotta Army is famous in Spain and the work of the archeological team in the excavation was recognized in the country in 2010 when they were given the prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences.