Guardians to the King: Terracotta Treasures from Ancient China ( Saturday 19th July - Sunday 2nd November 2008 )
On Saturday 19th July 2008 Colchester Castle Museum's most stunning exhibition to date will open and run until Sunday 2nd November.
This spectacular international exhibition will proudly showcase 43 miniature terracotta figures from Xuzhou Museum in Jiangsu Province, China. This is only the second time these enchanting figures have ever been out of China and their very first visit to the UK. The exhibition celebrates 20 years of friendship between Essex and Jiangsu Province.
The miniature terracotta figures are from the Chinese Han Dynasty and date to over 2,000 years old. The 43 terracotta figures represent soldiers, officials, dancers, musicians and cavalry horses. They have been excavated in the last 25 years from a series of royal tombs discovered at Xuzhou which belonged to the Kings of Chu. The kings were related to the Western Han emperors whose dynasty ruled China from 206BCE to 24CE.
Book tickets online now at http://www.visiteastofengland.com/guardians
Colchester Castle Museum is an obvious venue for this fantastic exhibition as there are many parallels and even some links between the Roman Empire and the Chinese empire of the Han Dynasty. The empires existed at the same time and traded with each other along the Silk Route.
Working in partnership with Essex County Council, Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service is delighted to be hosting this truly enchanting exhibition of miniature terracotta figures. These rare and beautiful figures cannot be seen anywhere else in the UK so do come along and pay them a visit.
Admission fee to Colchester Castle applies.
7 days a week
Mon - Sat 10am - 5pm Sun 11am - 5pm
www.colchestermuseums.org.uk 01206 282939