Doing Business in China

June 13,2009 in China.Archaeologists started the third excavation of Qin Dynasty Terra-cotta Warriors.The excavation will be open to public.

The pit being dug up is the first and largest of three pits at the site near Xi'an,capital of Shanxi province-since 1974 when the terracotta army was discovered.

The most important discovery the first day is two four-horse chariots that are standing in tandem very closely,said Cao Wei,deputy curator of the Qinshihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum.

"It is the first time for us to find such an existence in the excavation history",Cao said.Another discovery was that a few newly unearthed terracotta warriors were richly colored.Richly colored clay figures were unearthed from the mausoleum of Qinshihuang in the Qin Dynasty(221 B.C. - 207 B.C.),the first emperor of a uninted China,in previous excavations,but once they were exposed to the air they began to lose their luster and turn an oxidized grey.

"From what we have excavated today, the preservation of the cultural relics is better than thought," said Xu Weihong, head of the excavation team.

Also Saturday, deputy curator Cao told reporters that the state administration has approved a five-year excavation plan submitted by the museum.

"We plan to dig about 2,000 square meters in the coming five years," Cao said.

The first formal excavation lasted from 1978 to 1984,produced 1,087 clay figures.The discovery,listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO in December 1987,which turned Xi'an into one of China's major tourist attractions.

Tourists are thrilled as terracotta dig begins.One tourist from Hubei has decided to return to Xi'an every summer for the next five years."I want to witness each step of the excavation of the Qin terracotta warriors and horses," Sun Yunfeng from Enshi told China Daily yesterday.