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XI'AN -- Chinese archaeologists started a new excavation of the famous terracotta army site Saturday, hoping to find more clay figures and unravel some of the mysteries left behind by the "First Emperor."

It was the third excavation in the pit -- the first and largest of three pits at the site near Xi'an, capital of northwestern Shaanxi Province -- since 1974 when the terracotta army was discovered by peasants digging a well.

Archaeologists work at the excavation site of No.1 pit of the Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses of Emperor Qin Shihuang, in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Saturday June 13, 2009.  [Xinhua]

First Day: "Better Than Thought"

The new dig began at 1 p.m. Saturday, which marks the country's fourth Cultural Heritage Day, and it lasted about five hours on the first day.

"The most important discovery today is two four-horse chariots that are standing in tandem very closely," said Cao Wei, deputy curator of the Qinshihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum.

"It is the first time for us to find such an existence in the excavation history," Cao said.

In addition, another important discovery was that a few newly-unearthed terracotta warriors were richly colored. Archaeologists soon used plastic sheets to cover them for protection.

Richly colored clay figures were unearthed from the mausoleum of Qinshihuang in the Qin Dynasty (221 B.C.- 207 B.C.), the first emperor of a united China, in previous excavations, but once they were exposed to the air they began to lose their luster and turn an oxidized grey.

"From what we have excavated today, the preservation of the cultural relics is better than thought," said Xu Weihong, head of the excavation team.

"Take for instance, the discovery of the richly colored terracotta warriors gave us great confidence. I believe the future excavation will go smoothly," Xu said.

The 230 by 62-meter pit was believed to contain about 6,000 life-sized terracotta figures, more than 1,000 of which were found in previous excavations, said Wu Yongqi, museum curator.

The State Administration of Cultural Heritage has approved the museum's dig of 200 square meters of the site this year, Wu said.

Also Saturday, deputy curator Cao told reporters that the state administration has approved a five-year excavation plan submitted by the museum.

"We plan to dig about 2,000 square meters in the coming five years," Cao said