These replicas of the terracotta warriors are not a permanent instillation in San Diego, in fact they have already left. But were a feature of Comic-Con which is great yearly event in San Diego which draws thousands of comic book fans and often features A-list celebrities. Many in San Diego spend the entire year planning for the next convention and the elaborate costumes are a wonder to admire.
The installation was a promotion for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. The installation seemed to capture so much about San Diego. The Chinese theme harmonizes with the fact that San Diego has close ties with Asia. In fact the park where it was installed is not at all far form Asian Pacific Historical District, or China block as I affectionately refer to it. The other aspect of San Diego that is demonstrated by the promotion is San Diego's status as a D-list city. We aren't New York or Los Angeles. Celebrities don't make a big deal about comming here but they still occasionally show up to whatch the ponies at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club eulogized by Bing Crosby, or to slip down to Tijuana to enjoy some Cuban cigars in peace. And we do have a few local celebreties incuding one of my favorites Jewel.
The Terracotta Army (traditional Chinese: 兵馬俑; simplified Chinese: 兵马俑; pinyin: bīngmǎ yǒng; literally "soldier and horse funerary statues") are the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Shi Huang Di the First Emperor of China (wikipedia). There is also a good statue of Shi Huang Di at the San Diego Chinese Historical Museum which will be the subject of a another post. The First Emperor is much revered in China with many awesome feats ascribed to him. But I can't help but be a little creeped out that when he thought about what he wanted to take with him in the afterlife he chose an army. But many cultures don't have a particuliarly positive view of the afterlife. The details in the figures are amazing. I will add some more info about the army later on.
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