(Cont'd from Photo 097)
I like this photo because the terracotta archer and his admirer seem to be looking at each other.
On the back of this kneeling archer, there's some red colour, more obviously on the strap of his armour.
The red was an ancient coating of highly stable mineral pigments like cinnabar (mercuric sulfide), and iron oxide (ochre).
When there was a fire and the roof covering these statues collapsed more than 2,200 years ago, this statue was protected by heavy layer of damp mud which shielded its vibrant ancient pigments from rapid destruction.
When the Terracotta Army was first unearthed in 1974, the colours painted on the statues began to flake and disappear within just minutes of exposure to the air. This statue was an exception
Later, in the 1990s, Chinese scientists collaborated with German conservation experts to create a preservative spray, to apply on the statues where there was a patch of colour when it was unearthed.
Then they put the statues in a plastic wrap before it was moved to a special lab.