The earthen pyramid containing the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China — the man who ordered the Terracotta Warriors buried as his guard. The mound is 76 metres high and a third of a kilometre on each side, planted now with pomegranate and persimmon trees. The tomb itself has never been opened: archaeologists fear that exposure to air would destroy whatever paint and silk has survived inside, and the mercury problem is real.
Most visitors find the mausoleum less spectacular than the warriors a kilometre to the east, and many tour itineraries skip it. But it is included on the Terracotta Warriors site ticket, the walk between the two is shaded, and standing on top of the burial mound — knowing what is sealed twenty-five metres beneath your feet — is a strange and quiet experience that the warrior pits cannot match.