Mausoleum in China housing Terracotta Army reopens

Beijing: The mausoleum of Qinshihuang, known for the famous Terracotta Army in China's Shaanxi province, reopened on Friday after the Covid-19 resurgence suspended operations for over a month.

To visit Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum, tourists need to make a reservation online as the museum is operating at 30 per cent capacity at this time, Xinhua news agency quoted the authorities as sayinh.

The museum will not accept tour groups, and tourists from medium- and high-risk areas are also not permitted.

Museum operation was suspended in late July after sporadic locally transmitted Covid-19 cases were reported in several provinces of China.

Discovered in 1974, the Terracotta Army was built by Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221 B.C.-207 B.C.), who unified China for the first time.

The figures vary in height according to their roles, the tallest being the generals.

Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army held more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses.

Other museums of the province, including the Shaanxi History Museum, have also reopened to the public recently.