Beneath a quiet hill in China lies one of the most mysterious and dangerous places on Earth — the unopened tomb of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. 🏯 Archaeologists have explored the surrounding Terracotta Army, but the emperor’s actual burial chamber? It’s still sealed after more than 2,000 years. Ancient records describe rivers of flowing mercury, booby traps, and secrets that could rewrite history. Scientists have detected unusually high mercury levels around the site — suggesting those legends might be true. So why hasn’t anyone dared to open it? ⚔️ Credit: Mysteries of the Terracotta Warriors CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/: EN-WarringStatesAll260BCE: By Philg88, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11900403 EN-QIN260BCE: By Philg88, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11936378 map of the Warring States period: By Bairuilong, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30744485 Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/
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00:00One more step in the wrong direction, and the crossbows will release their arrows.
00:05If you open the wrong door, you'll end up in a river of mercury.
00:08It's almost impossible to get out of this place, but it is even more difficult to get here.
00:14No, this is not a location from an adventure movie, but a treasure hunter.
00:19This is a real giant tomb filled with traps and streams of toxic mercury.
00:24And it's not somewhere deep in the Amazon jungle or an unknown island.
00:27But this tomb is located in central China, near the city of Xi'an.
00:34And you know what the coolest thing is?
00:36This tomb was built more than 2,000 years ago.
00:39And even now, in the 21st century, we still don't know how to get there.
00:43But let's start from the beginning.
00:46Many of you have probably heard of terracotta statues.
00:50Thousands of clay sculptures of people.
00:52Those statues were first found in 1974, when a group of peasants were digging decks near Xi'an.
01:00They found a detailed human-sized figure, and that was one out of a thousand.
01:05Each figure was made as realistic as possible.
01:08Each of them was unique and had its distinctive details.
01:11More than 50 years have passed, and scientists are still digging up these sculptures.
01:17The number has already exceeded 8,000.
01:20But what are they doing there?
01:23What is their purpose?
01:25Terracotta sculptures are kinda guarding the tomb of Emperor Qin Xiahua.
01:31He was such an influential man in China that he wasn't just buried in a tomb.
01:35His servants created a giant coffin complex the size of a small town.
01:42So, if thousands of clay guards symbolically protect this place,
01:46it's difficult to imagine what's in the center of this ancient, gigantic tomb.
01:51But first, let's find out who Qin Xiaohuang was, and then move on to the dangerous traps.
01:58He was the first son of the ruler of the Kingdom of Qin.
02:01It was one of the six kingdoms that existed on the territory of modern China.
02:07In 2059 BCE, when Qin Xiaohuang was born,
02:11those six kingdoms were independent and separated from one another.
02:16Moreover, there was a strong conflict between them that lasted for more than 200 years.
02:21But Qin Xiaohuang turned out to be the man who managed to conquer and unite all these kingdoms.
02:28He became more than just a king.
02:29He became the first emperor of China.
02:33But how did he complete a seemingly impossible task?
02:38Natural disasters, clever strategy, tactics, and skills helped him to conquer the six kingdoms.
02:45Scientists are still arguing about some of the details of how this happened.
02:49All that can be said is that Qin Xiaohuang was a very wise and intelligent emperor.
02:55So it's not surprising that his burial turned out to be so huge.
03:00He was buried in the largest and most luxurious funeral complex in the history of China.
03:06The area the size of a small city contains many underground caves filled with things an emperor could need in the afterlife.
03:14In ancient China, as well as in ancient Egypt, people believed that when an emperor went to the other world,
03:21he could take with him those things that were buried with him.
03:23Unfortunately, sometimes it could be people.
03:27But Qin Xiaohuang acted wisely and correctly.
03:31He decided to bury clay statues.
03:33But the coolest thing is that the architects and builders of this complex made it impregnable.
03:40The whole area holds many secrets, historical artifacts, and priceless objects.
03:46There's a beautiful place with the emperor's body in the center of this tomb.
03:50Imagine how many treasures you can find there.
03:53And all of them were meant to remain untouched and unseen by other people.
03:58And we probably won't be able to get to them, at least in the near future.
04:03Ancient Chinese historian Sima Qian wrote something about the tomb about 100 years after the emperor's burial.
04:11He said that this place had dangerous traps inside the tomb that would destroy anyone who dared to enter the tomb.
04:18The engineers installed crossbows with loaded arrows and also poured a huge amount of mercury, simulating the movement of rivers.
04:26Of course, that was 2,000 years ago, and crossbows probably don't work anymore.
04:33But what about mercury?
04:35This toxic metal has no expiration date.
04:38It's shiny and moves quickly in liquid form.
04:40It looks beautiful.
04:42But don't touch it.
04:43Even a small drop of mercury can cause damage to your body.
04:47Inhalation of its vapors or ingestion causes damage to nerves, the liver, kidneys, and many other symptoms.
04:54And that's just one drop.
04:56Imagine how dangerous rivers of this substance can be.
05:00Who knows how much mercury was loaded there by the tomb builders.
05:04But even if you dodge all the traps and don't end up in the poisonous river, mercury would still be able to harm you.
05:11Its vapors can pass through the cracks in the walls.
05:13This means that the entire tomb is probably soaked in this substance.
05:17And by the way, this is not just a guess.
05:20Scientists have measured the mercury level at the excavation site and found that it's much higher than normal.
05:27But why mercury?
05:29In ancient China, mercury was considered the elixir of youth, the source of immortality.
05:35According to the records, Qin Xiaohuang often took pills with this element.
05:41Perhaps this was the reason that his life ended at the age of 49.
05:44In any case, people can damage ancient structures and artifacts during excavations.
05:50For example, archaeologists caused great damage to Tutankhamen's tomb during its exploration.
05:57You dig around, but then suddenly the entrance collapses.
06:00And you destroy vases, scrolls, interior decorations, and other stuff.
06:05But even if you do everything carefully, the writing and drawings on the walls can be destroyed by sunlight or oxygen.
06:13Places where there has been no fresh air and ultraviolet radiation for thousands of years have their own chemical composition that can be damaged by contact with the outside world.
06:22In the 1970s, when archaeologists were excavating terracotta sculptures, the paint pigment fell off the statues because of contact with the sun and air.
06:33Fortunately, the archaeologists quickly adapted and created a technology that allowed them to get the statues out without damaging the paint.
06:41It was a long and careful process, but it was worth it.
06:45And here's why.
06:46According to ancient writings, the emperor created an underground kingdom with a beautiful palace in the center.
06:54He decorated the ceiling of this palace with expensive pearls.
06:58You know why?
06:59To simulate the stars in the night sky.
07:03And that's just the ceiling.
07:04It's difficult to imagine how the walls, floor, and tomb of the emperor are decorated.
07:09Besides, scientists expect to find many other statues that copy the emperor's servants.
07:14So, in simple terms, the tomb of Qin Xiaohuang is a paradise for archaeologists and historians.
07:23But of course, it will take more than one generation before they extract all the treasures.
07:28Some experts predict that the excavation of the entire tomb could take centuries.
07:33But of course, new archaeological technologies can change everything.
07:36For example, non-invasive research methods mean you don't have to enter the tomb.
07:42You can see it through a special device.
07:44Another idea is the use of muons.
07:48Those are subatomic products that appear as a result of the collision of cosmic rays and atoms in the Earth's atmosphere.
07:55The point is that these muons can penetrate through solid objects, just like x-rays.
08:00Or how about nanotechnologies?
08:03Imagine millions of tiny digger robots climbing into a tomb and starting to scan the area.
08:09They transmit the data to a computer.
08:12And then, scientists create a holographic model.
08:16It all sounds cool, but to be honest, the charm of archaeology is lost here.
08:20It's one thing when you carefully dig up some ancient artifact with your hands, see it with your own eyes, and scrupulously clean it from the ground.
08:29And it's completely different when you watch it on a computer screen.
08:32But in any case, technologies using muons or some kind of robots ensure people's safety.
08:38It's better if a computer falls into a trap than if it happens to an archaeologist.
08:43That's it for today.
08:46So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your friends.
08:51Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the bright side.
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