Freitag
19
JUL

18.00 Uhr

Qin Shihuangdi and his Acrobat Figurines

A Comparative Archaeological Approach

Prof. Dr. Armin Selbitschka, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Institut für Sinologie

Not too long ago, the so-called “acrobat” figurines yielded by Pit 9901 (K9901) at the First Emperor’s (Qin Shihuangdi) funerary park became somewhat (in)famous. One scholar argued that these particular sculptures were not only influenced by Hellenistic art, but produced by Greek artisans in the Qin capital Xianyang. Such bold claims naturally sparked lively discussions. However, the majority of arguments do not address the archaeological material itself; rather, they are enmeshed in fairly fruitless speculations on Early Chinese cross-cultural contacts.
Consequently, I will undertake a comprehensive analysis of the archaeological finds and features from Pit 9901 in this talk. The purported acrobats were but one of several kinds of larger than life-sized sculptures that came to light at the First Emperor’s mausoleum complex. The several thousands of famous terracotta warriors are certainly the best-known group of figurines, but additional excavation campaigns over the past two decades also yielded officials, musicians, and the so-called acrobats. Thus, the acrobat figurines must be viewed in a larger context. Based on comparisons of descriptions of weight training in the ancient Mediterranean world and early Chinese written sources, I will demonstrate that the archaeological finds and features from Pit 9901 call for a different interpretation. The sculptures were not representing acrobats but something else…

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