Terracotta Soldier

from Repeat the Days by Atlas Fret

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about

In 1974, Chinese farmers drilling for well water found pottery fragments that led to the discovery and excavation of over 6,000 terracotta soldiers, horses, and chariots. This "army of dreams" (we borrowed the phrase from a booklet issued by the Terracotta Museum) was the afterlife defense force of China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang Di, whose brief, terror-filled reign lasted from 221 to 207 B.C.E. With their individualized faces and other incredible details, the terracotta soldiers, fired in kilns at temperatures up to 1,050 degrees centigrade, fire the imagination.

lyrics

Qin Shi Huang Di
Needs an army right away
Eternity
Is knocking at the gate

Not drafted, you were molded
Rank and file
Born a full grown warrior
In the empire’s favorite style

Terracotta Soldier
In an army of dreams
You’ve been fired in the kiln
Not as tough as you might seem

It’s an old familiar story
In the service of a king
Your only hope for glory
Is the terror of his reign

Ribbons of vermilion
And Dragon Veins
Is it the kingdom you’re defending
Or the boy king’s gold and jade?

Terracotta Soldier
In an army of dreams
You’ve been fired in the kiln
Not as tough as you might seem

You’re just a hollow warrior
With feet of clay
You’ve been buried for the ages
And you’ll never have a name

(You’re just a) Terra-Cotta Soldier
In a terror kind of world
Staying underground
Fighting evil forces