Most emperors of the Tang dynasty (618-907) were buried near the capital, Chang'an or what is now Xi'an. To be exact, 18 imperial tombs of the dynasty are counted in a 100 kilometer-long area in the north part of the Guanzhong Basin, Shaanxi Province, which encompasses Qianxian, Lixian, Jingyang. Sanyuan, Fuping and Pucheng counties . Most of the tombs have hills behind. with neat groups of stone statues placed at either side of the roads leading to their main gates and beyond each side gates. Those flanking the so-called "divine roads" are

The stone relier brings back to life one of the six battle steeds most favored by Li Shimin, the second emperor of the Tang Dynasty.Pay attention to the man-in fact an army general named Qiu Xinggong-trying to pull out an arrow shot deep into the horse.

A horse and its tamer in front of the tomb shared by Emperor Li Zhi of the Tang Dynasty and his queen, Empress Wu Zetian.

     The indomitable will of the dynasty's founding fathers to seize control of China and consolidate their rule was the dominating theme of stone art works produced during the early period of the dynasty. The most representative of such works is a group of large-sized stone relieves that bring back to life the six battle steeds most favored by Li Shimin, the second emperor of the dynasty who reigned supreme from 627 to 649. As commander-in-chief of the Tang army, Li Shimin had played a pivotal role in wars that ushered in the birth of the Tang Dynasty.

    The relieves are in a style of realism, with minute details depicting the might and grandeur of the horses including wounds caused by arrows on some of them. One of the horses is seen with a warrior standing in its front, trying to pull out an arrow shot deep into its body. The relieves were obviously meant to eulogize Emperor Li Shimin for his heroism. Though not seen with any of the horses, for such powerful portrayal of his battle steeds the emperor makes his presence in the mind's eye of the viewer.

    Now let us see those stone statues placed in front of the tomb shared by Emperor Li Zhi, who reigned from 650 to 683, and his queen, Wu Zetian. These are regarded as more artistically sophisticated than those produced earlier. It may be interesting to note that by skillfully using political intrigues, Wu Zetian broke the normal line of succession for the imperial crown and was able to rule the country from 684 to 704. She was the sole female sovereign in the Chinese history.

    The four gates of the mausoleum compound each have a pair of stone lions outside. In addition to stone lions, the north gate has six stone horses in its front. Flanking the "divine road" is an "imperial guard of honor" consisting complete arrays of stone statues. These comprise, from south to north in succession, a pair of columns that symbolize the imperial power, a pair of ostriches, a pair of horses with wings, five pairs of horses with a horse driver standing beside each, ten pairs of human figures and two pairs of stone tablets. There are also 61 statues of envoys from lands far away from China.

    Relative to the six battle steeds, stone statues dedicated to Emperor Li Zhi and Empress Wu Zetian look composed and solemn. Horses, for example, all stand erect with their drivers.