The Emperor's Eternal Armies auf DVD ausleihen

Seen as the eights wonder of the world, the terracotta armies of the first and fifth emperors of China are helping to unravel 2000 years of Chinese history. These tombs are helping us understand what China is today and where its origins lie. 25 years ago, then thousand life-sized figurines were found next to the tomb of the first emperor of China, Qin (Chin) Shihuang Di, whom the country of China was named after. This vast terracotta army was also accompanied by the slaughtered bodies of his favourite concubines and best horses. Now another terracotta rmy was also accompanied by the slaughtered bodies of his favourite concubines and best horses. Now another terracotta army has been unerthed, belonging to the Emperor Jing Di, who ruled 60 years after the first emperor. There are noticeable differences: he had female warriors on horseback, dancing girls, musicians and rows upon rows of animals. Some of the sculpted soldiers were clearly from different ethnic minorities showing a change in society over a very short period...

What was the purpose of these extraordinary tombs, and what do they tell us about Chinese society 2000 years ago? With a cast of 35 a crew of 40, stunning computer graphics and archive footage, this epic production weaves a fascinating tale of the secretive Chinese culture, both then and now. To the Chinese, the afterlife is just an extension of life on earth - so an emperor required slaves, concubines, animals, food, weapons, and chariots. With the establishment of a bureaucracy, Qin even had a replica of his civil service buried with him, the terracotta models symbolically representing real people. Such beliefs survive today - even though they are frowned upon by the communist authoritiesl. With strong liks to the past, we see unique footage of a modern Chinese funeral, where paper copies of a person's possessions are still made, and then burnt: paper TVs, cars and money all accompany people to the grave. We once thought the terracotta armies of the emperors' Qin and Jing inexplicable mysteries. But through the discoveries on the sites, we are beginning to unravel the secrets of Chinese history.