The Acrobats
The Acrobats (百戏俑) are a series of terracotta sculptures from pit K9901 of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor Qin Shihuang (dated to 210-209 BCE). They are famous for their naturalism, and the artistic understanding of human anatomy that they represent. Because of this, they are at the center of academic attention regarding the possible local and foreign influences that led to their creation, and beyond them, to the creation of the Terracotta Army. In particular, the 1999 discovery of The Acrobats by Duan Qingbo, Chief archaeologist of the Mausoleum from 1998 to 2008, led to his proposal that West Asian cultures, and particularly Hellenistic art, deeply influenced the works of the first Qin Emperor. Characteristics The acrobats were discovered in 1999 inside a pit right inside of the Mausoleum walls. The sculptures display an advanced understanding of human anatomy. Wheareas the anatomy of the terracotta warriors is rather uncertain under their bulky uniforms, the acrobats on the contrary display many details of human anatomy which had never been shown in Far Eastern art traditions: the proportions of the body are accurate, the musculature appears bulging under the skin, the ribs appear along the flanks and the emergence of