A local law to protect the mausoleum of China's first emperor Qinshihuang will become effective on October 1.
   
The Shaanxi Provincial Regulations on Protection of the Mausoleum of Qinshihuang were adopted by the 20th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 10th Shaanxi Provincial People's Congress on July 30 this year. This is the first local law for protection of sites of historical interest in China.
   
The Mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang, the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), is located in Lintong County, 35 km east of Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province. The mausoleum is regarded as "the eighth wonder of the world" and was listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO in December 1987.
   
Covering an area of 56 square km, the 70-meter-high mausoleum draws millions of visitors from home and abroad every year. It is believed to be the first imperial mausoleum in China. According to historical records, Qinshihuang mobilized 700,000 workers to build the mausoleum in 38 years.
   
Nearly 8,000 life-sized terracotta warriors and horses along with tens of thousands of pieces of weaponry have been uncovered from three pits, where the terra-cotta warriors and horses have slept for almost 2,200 years. The purpose of the warriors and horses, located less than a mile from the emperor's tomb, were to maintain and protect the spirit of Qin Shihuang, the first man to unite China, throughout eternity.
   
The mausoleum was accidentally discovered by a group of farmers in March 1974 when they were digging a well for irrigation in the region.
   
The regulations will protect more than 50,000 historical relics, including all major building structures, ruins of historical sites in and around the mausoleum, and relics that have been unearthed or are still buried underground. 

Yuan Zhongyi, honorary curator of Qinshihuang Mausoleum Museum and a famous Chinese archaeologist, said the regulation is an epoch-making event in the protection of Qinshihuang Mausoleum and the terra-cotta warriors and horses.

(Xinhua News Agency October 1, 2005)