More than 2,200 years ago, the mighty army of Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang was
the terror of Qin's neighboring states. More recently, a detachment of life-size
terra-cotta warriors unearthed near the emperor's tomb invaded the United States
in a decidedly more 21st-century fashion: aboard a brown-tailed UPS 747-400
freighter.
More than 8,000 terra-cotta warriors and horses were buried with Qin about 210
B.C. Chinese farmers digging a well in 1974 near Xi'an in China's Shaanxi
province discovered the army, still guarding the emperor's tomb.
The U.S.-bound exhibit was packed in 42 specially constructed crates for movement in the Boeing 747. The nose of the massive air freighter, the newest in the UPS fleet, lifts to allow the loading of large cargo.
Over the next two years, the warriors will tour museums in Los Angeles, Houston, Atlanta and Washington, D.C.
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