Pit 4 of Terracotta Army Museum

Pit 4 is located northwest of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, positioned between Pit 2 and Pit 3 . It measures approximately 75 meters (246 feet) long from north to south and 48 meters (157.5 feet) wide from east to west, covering a total area of 3,600 square meters (0.89 acres). In May 1995, archaeologists carried out a trial excavation in the northwest corner of Pit 4, uncovering about 70 square meters (753 square feet). They found it to be empty, with no terracotta warriors, horses, or other cultural relics - just backfilled soil. The excavated area has since been covered with a glass enclosure, allowing visitors to view it from above.
 

In the other pits at the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, there are many terracotta warriors, horses, and weapons, but Pit 4 remains the only one empty. Why? Currently, archaeologists have two main hypotheses:
 

Excavated Area of Pit 4 Covered With a Glass Enclosure

Many archaeologists believe this is mostly linked to the peasant uprisings at the end of the Qin Dynasty (221 - 207 BC). After the death of Qin Shi Huang, the second emperor of the Qin Dynasty continued to build the Terracotta Army. At that time, the Qin State encountered a peasant uprising, and the Qin army fighting on the front line of the battlefield suffered heavy losses. As a result, the laborers working on the pits were probably drafted to reinforce the front lines, causing the abrupt halt in Pit 4's construction.

So, if construction had not been interrupted, what would Pit 4 have contained?

Archaeologist Yuan Zhongyi, the first curator of the Terracotta Army Museum, proposed that armies were typically organized into three divisions in ancient China, including the left army, right army, and central army. According to current excavations, Pit 1 probably represents the right army, Pit 2 the left army, and Pit 3 the command center. Therefore, Pit 4 should be the central army.

Then, what kind of military force was planned for Pit 4 of Terracotta Army? The most plausible answer is cavalry, and here are the reasons:
 

 

Location Map of Terracotta Army Pit 4

Some historians argue that Pit 4 served only as a soil extraction trench for the other pits' construction, rather than being intended for housing terracotta warriors and horses. The reasons are as follows:

1. Unlike other terracotta army pits, Pit 4 lacks the characteristic sloping entrance ramps.
2. The soil inside the pit was deliberately backfilled rather than accumulated naturally, indicating that the backfilled soil was what remained after use.
3. It was much wider from north to south than from east to west, thus not in the same direction as the other three pits.
4. If it is a terracotta warriors' pit, it should have been designed and constructed together with the other three pits, rather than being empty.
5. To date, not a single piece of relics from the Qin Dynasty, even common construction materials like tiles, have been found in Pit 4.

 See more:

• Terracotta Warriors Pit 1
• Best Time to Visit Terracotta Army
• Top 20 Questions about Terracotta Army
• How to Visit Terracotta Army - A Comprehensive Visitor's Guide