Overview: Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty. He became King at the age of 12 and lived in the 2nd century BCE. According to historical records, he had an army of one million professional soldiers built, and was the one who initiated construction of the Great Wall of China In 1974 the most important archaeological discovery in the world took place when more than 8000 life-size clay warriors were uncovered in Xi an, China. The clay army lies in the greatest mausoleum in the world, and archaeologists assert that it was meant to protect Emperor Qin Shi Huang in his journey after death. Each soldier was created with unique characteristics and was placed according to rank. Horses, weapons and other objects were also discovered.