Qin Dynasty terracotta statue With colored paintings.

servants, guards and performers were all created as burial objects. These tomb figurines as well as toys in the shape of animals were collectively referred to as Yong.

    The Qin (221-206 B.C.) and Han (206 B.C.-220 A.D.) Dynasties were the early phases in the development of Chinese feudal nsociety; it was the crucial period when all the nationalities of China, through a process of mergence, established a country of multiple nationalities. We saw in Qin Dynasty for the first time in history the unification of China. Qin Shihuangdi as the first emperor signified that the Qin Dynasty under his reign was unprecedented in scale and power. His armies also commanded great honor and imposing manner due to the national spirit of his era. Such a spirit can be seen in the art forms of the time.

Clay woman figure. Six dynasties.

    The great discovery made in 1974 truly shocked the world. With its unprecedented artistic expression and grandness of scale, the terracotta warriors uncovered near the tomb of Qin Shihuangdi are a treasure to human civilization. Several thousand lifelike and life-sized human and horse sculptures dressed in war armor were presented in formation. There were forward combat warriors, foot soldiers, cavalries and chariots, as well as guard troops at the  flanks. In groups of four, robust terracotta steeds were seen with well-equipped war chariots, armor-clad soldiers and caped

Terracotta horse chariot unearthed from the tombs of Qin Shihuangdi.

    These terracotta sculptures were made with combined techniques of molding and modeling, and were created first in parts and then assembled. The different parts were connected to form a rough body and fine clay is applied to the surface. With modeling, pinching, piling, plastering, carving and painting, each of the several

thousand soldiers of different ages and ranks were made to resemble unique personalities. One can almost tell their hometowns from their very detailed and specific appearances.

    All the warriors wore plated armors with belts fastened and hair tied in a knot, ready to conquer the battlefields. Some soldiers held bows and crossbows in their hands with pouches full of arrows carried on their backs. Others held long spears with swords and scimitar. Still others were middle-aged strongmen with jagged beards and mustache or younglings with unrelenting energy. Look closely and one can even find, among the warriors, long-bearded elders with thinned faces; or fearless fighters who can overcome anything in their way. The commanders' forms were the most successful and astounding, with tall helmets, intricate armor and long

Man playing string instrument, H 36 cm. Clay sculpture. Eastern Han Dynasty. Collection of the Guizhou Museum.

the battle array. The Qin terracotta warriors

Eastern Han Dynasty clay vocalist figure.

were truly the masterpiece in the history of ancient Chinese sculptures. The Qin artisan, with their superb artistic creativity and awesome display for realistic modeling, left later generations with an immensely astonishing work of art.

    The Han Dynasty was the period of great development for Chinese sculptural. The categories, numbers, body and technical quality of figures produced at this time have all reached unprecedented high levels. However, after entering the Western Han Dynasty, those life-sized sculptures found in Qin Shihuangdi's tomb have already become a thing of the past. The Han Dynasty emperors' tombs were based on the tomb of Qin Shihuangdi, however the Hart tomb figurines, albeit matching in quantity with the Qin, were reduced considerably in size. The average height was usually 50 to 60 cm. In the first year of the Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-25 A.D.), there were already two general kinds of clay figure in existence. One kind completely replicated those of the Qin tomb figures, where the clothing and accessories were directly formed out of clay. The second type was drastically different as the figures represented naked bodies of men and women, which were dressed in real costumes and clothing later on.

    In the Han Dynasty, aside from tombs of emperors, which had the privilege to be buried with clay armies in formation, highly renowned generals also enjoyed the company of statues in military formation

Foreign musician playing drum in camelback. Clay sculpture. Tang Dynasty.

the emperor's next of kin had tombs smaller in size compared to the emperor, but had in addition to protective warrior statues, also clay figures of family servants and performers. By the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.), with the development of a plantation farming economy, powerful and influential landlords begin to play a greater role in the political arena. In their burials grounds were scaled-down, group clay sculptures that imitated real scenes of farm production and daily living, which were even more vivid and convincing.

    By mid-Western Han Dynasty, pottery figures began to show a new style, with bolder and freer sculpting techniques, no longer confined by the style of detailed human feature depiction that was prevalent in Qin and early Han sculptures. The newer style was more focused on overall simplicity and suggestive forms. Also, the subject matter and object forms were also more inclusive and varied; more depictions of folk living and a musement can be found. In 1969 a Han tomb found in the northern suburbs of Jinan City contained colored pottery sculptures of arts performers and audiences, all in one group. These clay figures were all made out of molds, with a layer of white powder as prime, and painted on top in red, black, brown, green and so on. This sculpture group was placed on top of a rectangular earthenware plate that was 67 cm in length and 47.5 cm in width.

     Against a backdrop of a musical band with all sorts of instruments and performers, a dance and acrobatics troupe comprising of both males and females took up center stage. On the sides were seven spectators in long robes and sleeves watching attentively. In the entire scene, the performers, spectators and the band players were arranged in a very orderly fashion, placing the correct emphasis on the respective objects. This was a very vivid scene of entertainment performance for the loyalty, displayed so realistically that it makes one feel to be a part of the actual scene. The creator of this sculpture group tried to capture the people's spirits and movements, but not overly focused on the facial expressions and det

Western Han Dynasty clay horse carriage.

Clay ceremonial guard figure, H 49 cm. Western Han Dynasty.

    From Western Han to Eastern Hart, the subject matters of pottery figures have become even more rich and inclusive. There were models of carriages hauled by handsome stallions, as well as throngs of male and female servants, music and dancer performers and so on, all of which were common subject matters for making sculptures at the time. The most vivid and memorable pieces among the so-called "100 performance artists" sculptures uncovered so far at Chengdu suburbs had to be the "vocalist figures," which were all depicted top-naked. Also famous were figurines of dancers, wind instrument performers, sitting figurines, and more. The sword-wielding figurine, drummer figurine and string instrument figurines found in Chongqing City were all very lively and realistic, full of the essence of daily living. Furthermore, animal sculptures of the Han Dynasty were also very successful. Examples such as the clay

Eastern Han Dynasty clay spectator figure.

animal sculptures from Hui County, Henan Province, all fully demonstrated the different posture and attitudes of the all kinds of animals.

    Not only were statues of warriors, secretarial officials and music and acrobatic performers still being produced by this time, more simulated architecture and farmland scenes were modeled into pottery. There would be many clay sculptures depicting laborers in the fields, as well as miniaturized farms and even rice paddies. The farmers were shown to be carrying spades and shouldering hoes and so on; some were equipped with long swords at the waist. These were the images of farmers, who worked for large and powerful clans in the late Eastern Han period, functioning as both farm workers and armed guards for their masters. There were also figures of domestic servants serving tea, dusting the furniture and ornaments and sweeping the floor; or kitchen helpers who are gutting fish. The clay figures showed development of a plantation farming economy in a special feudal era. At the same time, it demonstrated that the Han Dynasty, different from the Qin, pursued pragmatism in aesthetics.