Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Twelve Metal Colossi" in English language version.
Received texts actually provide two different weight measurements for the statues. The one reports that they weighed one thousand shi (approx. 29,760 kg), while the other reports they weighed 240,000 jin (approx. 59,520 kg) each.
According to the Sanfu jiushi text, these were set up in front of the in-progress Epang Palace (which was never completed). The Han rulers later moved them into their capital and placed them before one of the halls in the Palace of Lasting Joy (Changle Gong).
As for the surviving two statues, according to the Record of the Land within the Passes (Guanzhong ji 關中記) text: After Dong Zhuo destroyed [ten of ] the bronze men, the remaining two were moved inside the Qing[ming] Gate (on the east side of Chang'an). Emperor Ming of the Wei (Cao Rui 曹叡; r. 226–39 CE) wanted to move them to [his renovated capital of ] Luoyang and had them dragged as far as Bacheng (east of Chang'an), but because of their enormous weight, he could not complete the transport. Later, Shi Hu 石虎 (r. 334–49 CE), Emperor Wu of the Later Zhao dynasty, moved them to his capital of Ye 鄴, and Fu Jian 苻堅 (r. 357–385 CE), Emperor Xuanzhao of the Former Qin dynasty, subsequently move them backto Chang'an and melted them down
Sculpture as an artistic medium was widely employed in the arts of Greece and the Hellenistic East, but played only a minor role in ancient East Asia. This changed dramatically with the First Emperor of China (...) Naturalistic sculpture was entirely unknown.
In addition, there are the statuettes of two horse riders which came to light in a late fourth-century bc tomb in Taerpo 塔兒坡, Xianyang, Shaanxi, which are believed to be the earliest depiction of riders in China....
Other noteworthy terracotta figurines were found in 1995 in a 4th–3rd century BCE tomb in the Taerpo cemetery near Xianyang in Shaanxi Province, where the last Qin capital of the same name was located from 350 to 207 BCE. These are the earliest representations of cavalrymen in China discovered up to this day. One of this pair can now be seen at the exhibition in Bern (Fig. 4). A small, ca. 23 cm tall, figurine represents a man sitting on a settled horse. He stretches out his left hand, whereas his right hand points downwards. Holes pierced through both his fists suggest that he originally held the reins of his horse in one hand and a weapon in the other. The rider wears a short jacket, trousers and boots – elements of the typical outfit of the inhabitants of the Central Asian steppes. Trousers were first introduced in the early Chinese state of Zhao during the late 4th century BCE, as the Chinese started to learn horse riding from their nomadic neighbours. The state of Qin should have adopted the nomadic clothes about the same time. But the figurine from Taerpo also has some other features that may point to its foreign identity: a hood-like headgear with a flat wide crown framing his face and a high, pointed nose.Also in Khayutina, Maria (2013). Qin: the eternal emperor and his terracotta warriors (1. Aufl ed.). Zürich: Neue Zürcher Zeitung. p. cat. no. 314. ISBN 978-3-03823-838-6.
Received texts actually provide two different weight measurements for the statues. The one reports that they weighed one thousand shi (approx. 29,760 kg), while the other reports they weighed 240,000 jin (approx. 59,520 kg) each.
According to the Sanfu jiushi text, these were set up in front of the in-progress Epang Palace (which was never completed). The Han rulers later moved them into their capital and placed them before one of the halls in the Palace of Lasting Joy (Changle Gong).
As for the surviving two statues, according to the Record of the Land within the Passes (Guanzhong ji 關中記) text: After Dong Zhuo destroyed [ten of ] the bronze men, the remaining two were moved inside the Qing[ming] Gate (on the east side of Chang'an). Emperor Ming of the Wei (Cao Rui 曹叡; r. 226–39 CE) wanted to move them to [his renovated capital of ] Luoyang and had them dragged as far as Bacheng (east of Chang'an), but because of their enormous weight, he could not complete the transport. Later, Shi Hu 石虎 (r. 334–49 CE), Emperor Wu of the Later Zhao dynasty, moved them to his capital of Ye 鄴, and Fu Jian 苻堅 (r. 357–385 CE), Emperor Xuanzhao of the Former Qin dynasty, subsequently move them backto Chang'an and melted them down
Received texts actually provide two different weight measurements for the statues. The one reports that they weighed one thousand shi (approx. 29,760 kg), while the other reports they weighed 240,000 jin (approx. 59,520 kg) each.
According to the Sanfu jiushi text, these were set up in front of the in-progress Epang Palace (which was never completed). The Han rulers later moved them into their capital and placed them before one of the halls in the Palace of Lasting Joy (Changle Gong).
As for the surviving two statues, according to the Record of the Land within the Passes (Guanzhong ji 關中記) text: After Dong Zhuo destroyed [ten of ] the bronze men, the remaining two were moved inside the Qing[ming] Gate (on the east side of Chang'an). Emperor Ming of the Wei (Cao Rui 曹叡; r. 226–39 CE) wanted to move them to [his renovated capital of ] Luoyang and had them dragged as far as Bacheng (east of Chang'an), but because of their enormous weight, he could not complete the transport. Later, Shi Hu 石虎 (r. 334–49 CE), Emperor Wu of the Later Zhao dynasty, moved them to his capital of Ye 鄴, and Fu Jian 苻堅 (r. 357–385 CE), Emperor Xuanzhao of the Former Qin dynasty, subsequently move them backto Chang'an and melted them down
Sculpture as an artistic medium was widely employed in the arts of Greece and the Hellenistic East, but played only a minor role in ancient East Asia. This changed dramatically with the First Emperor of China (...) Naturalistic sculpture was entirely unknown.
In addition, there are the statuettes of two horse riders which came to light in a late fourth-century bc tomb in Taerpo 塔兒坡, Xianyang, Shaanxi, which are believed to be the earliest depiction of riders in China....
