2．文化艺术瑰宝地

2．文化艺术瑰宝地

西安作为12朝古都，见证了多个王朝的荣辱兴衰。历史在这里留下的文物景观和遗址不胜枚举，如秦始皇陵兵马俑、汉长安城遗址、慈恩寺大雁塔、华清池等都是人类文化艺术的瑰宝。

秦始皇陵与兵马俑坑　秦始皇陵位于西安市临潼县城东的骊山北麓，是中国历史上第一个皇帝嬴政（前259～前210）的陵墓，前后延续30余年。

秦始皇陵墓结构宏大，筑有象征着都城的皇城和宫城的内外两重土制城垣，可以称得上是一个地下王国。据史料记载，秦陵中还建有各式各样的宫殿，每个宫殿中都陈列着许多珍宝。秦始皇陵墓四周分布着大量的陪葬坑，秦始皇陵兵马佣坑就是其中最著名的一个。

兵马俑的发现被称为"20世纪最重要的考古发现"，堪称“世界第八大奇迹”。兵马俑坑位于秦始皇陵东侧，其中出土的秦代陶俑、大量的战马战车和武器，代表了秦代雕塑艺术的最高成就。其中出土的兵马俑高大威武，像是一组在守卫地下皇城的军队。兵马俑形体高大，形象生动，神态逼真，栩栩如生，是中国古代的艺术宝库。而且，这里出土的数万件青铜兵器都是实战兵器，有的直到现在还寒光闪闪，这说明2000多年前秦朝人的高超智慧，更是世界冶金史上的一个奇迹。

秦始皇陵兵马俑是可以同埃及金字塔和古希腊雕塑相媲美的世界人类文化的宝贵财富，以其浓厚的文化内涵和丰富的文物资源，成为举世闻名的世界文化遗产。

汉长安城遗址　汉长安城遗址位于今西北郊的汉城乡，是西汉时期的都城遗址。

汉长安城的城墙均为板筑的土墙，墙高8米，墙基宽16米，高大结实，前后用了5年时间才修筑而成。城的四面有三座城门，每座城门大小都不一样，但却都依据严格的规制设计。城内街道宽阔平整，规划整齐，将长安城分为9个区。长乐宫、未央宫、建章宫是城中最著名的三大宫殿群，未央宫前殿是目前仍保存完好的遗址，位于城的西南部，又称为西宫。它利用龙首原高台作为殿基，体现了封建帝王的威严。

慈恩寺大雁塔　慈恩寺大雁塔位于西安南郊。慈恩寺建于唐代，是唐朝太子李治为了追念他的母亲文德皇后而建立的，至今已经有1000多年的历史。

大雁塔塔身高大，结构坚固，外观庄严大方，最初建的时候只有5层，后来又经过多次重修，现在的塔是7层，高达64米，呈方形角锥状。塔身由青砖砌成，塔内的平面也呈方形，每一层都有楼板，且设有扶梯，参观者可以攀登到塔顶。

大雁塔底层南门两侧，有唐代著名书法家褚遂良书写的《大唐三藏圣教序》和《述三藏圣教序记》两块石碑，碑侧的花纹图案优美，造型生动，是研究唐代书法、绘画、雕刻艺术的重要文物。

华清池　又称华清宫，位于西安以东约30千米的骊山脚下，是中国著名的温泉胜地。华清池作为中国古代帝王的行宫和游览地已经有3000多年的历史了，从周朝开始，许多皇帝都在这里修建过行宫别墅。秦、汉、隋各代先后几次进行修建，到了唐代又多次增建。

但是，经过历史上的多次王朝更替和频繁的战争，华清池的原貌已不复存在，现在的建筑都是按照历史记载的布局在1959年重新建的。我们有幸可以领略到当年华清池的大体风貌。

2. Historical Relics

Capital of twelve dynasties and a witness of the rise and fall of times, today, the city of Xi'an continues to tell its residents what their ancestors did through numerous historical sites and cultural relics. Among them are the famous Qinshihuang's Mausoleum and the Burial Pits of Terracotta Warriors and Horses, the Site of Chang'an City of the Han dynasty, the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in the Ci'en Temple and the Huaqing Pool.

Qinshihuang's Mausoleum and the Burial Pits of Terracotta Warriors and Horses

Situated at the north foot of the Mount Lishan east of Lintong County, Xi'an, Qinshihuang's Mausoleum is the mausoleum of Emperor Yingzheng, the first emperor (which shihuang literally means) recorded in history. After more than thirty years of construction, the mausoleum was completed with two layers of walls segregating the underground capital into the imperial city and the imperial palace as the capital above the ground was. So magnificent it is, the mausoleum is literally "an underground kingdom". According to historical records, inside the mausoleum, there are all kinds of palaces with numerous treasures on display; around the Mausoleum are various burial pits, among which is the most famous one-the Burial Pits of Terracotta Warriors and Horses.

The discovery of the Burial Pits of Terracotta Warriors and Horses which are deemed as the "eighth wonder of the world" is the most significant archaeological discovery in the 20th century. All the unearthed terracotta warriors, horses, chariots and weapons are a testimony to the artistic achievements the Chinese scored in the Qin dynasty. Tall and imposing, the warriors of vivid and varied expressions, together with the horses, constituted a troop stationed to guard the underground imperial capital in the past and a treasury of the ancient Chinese arts at present. Some of the thousands of unearthed bronze weapons are still sharp and glistens after being buried under the ground for more than 2000 years. This is a real wonder in the world history of metallurgy and demonstrates the wisdom of the Qin people.

The Mausoleum with the terracotta army, regarded as valuable as the pyramids in Egypt and the Statue of Zeus in Greece, is a cultural heritage of the whole world.

The Site of Chang'an City of the Han Dynasty

Situated in the Hancheng village in the northeast suburb of today's Xi'an, the site is where the capital of Western Han dynasty used to be.

Built with rammed earth and completed in five years, the city wall, 8 meters in height and 16 meters in thickness at the base, was imposing and solid. On the four walls surrounding the capital, there were three gates, built in different sizes yet all in accordance with strict rules. Inside the capital city which was neatly divided into nine blocks by wide and smooth streets, there were the three most important palace groups-the Changle Palace complex, the Weiyang Palace complex and the Jianzhang Palace complex. Of the three, the Weiyang Palace, located southeast of the capital and also known as the West Palace, is the best preserved. Constructed on a plain called Longshouyuan, the palace well embodies the stateliness of the emperor.

Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in the Ci'en Temple

Located in the south suburbs of Xi'an, Ci'en Temple, the home of the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, was built by Emperor Gaozong of the Tang dynasty in memory of his mother Empress Wende ("Wen" menas gentle and "de" means virtuous) and has stood there ever since for more than one thousand years.

Simple yet solemn, the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda is of a firm structure built of grey bricks. Originally built with only 5 stories, now the Pagoda measures 64 meters high with additional two stories after several repairs. Externally it looks like a square cone while inside stairs twist up so that visitors can climb to the top.

On both sides of the south gate to the ground floor of the Pagoda stand two stone tablets on which are inscriptions of An Introduction to the Sacred Teaching of Monk Tripitaka of the Great Tang Dynasty and Notes on the Introduction to the Sacred Teaching of Monk Tripitaka of the Great Tang Dynasty inscribed by Chu Suiliang, a famous calligrapher of the Tang dynasty. The two tablets, with a beautiful floral design on its sides as well as the calligraphic works, are important cultural relics for a study on calligraphy, paintings and carvings in the Tang dynasty.

Huaqing Pool

The Huaqing Pool, also known as the Huaqing Palace, is famed as a hot spring resort and situated at the foot of Mount Li 30 kilometers north to the city proper of Xi'an. Around 3000 years ago, an emperor of the Zhou dynasty built a temporary imperial abode there. Ever since then, as a palace for leisure for emperors, it was under constant reconstruction through Qin, Han and Sui dynasties and was expanded several times in Tang.

After the change of dynasties and frequent wars, the original Huaqing Pool had vanished into thin air long before. However, we can still gain a glimpse of the original based on the current one which was constructed in 1959 according to the original layout as is written in historical records.