'Mind-blowing': Terracotta Warriors Perth brings stunning new artefacts to Australia

An international exclusive exhibition has opened in Perth, and as this visitor discovered, it's bringing history to life in a fascinating new way.

Never had it ever occurred to me that China’s famous Terracotta Warriors were once vibrantly coloured. Yet regal purple robes, teal green pants and rusty red armour with pink ties and aqua tassels dazzle my eyes, as clay brown gets a glow up.

This new paradigm blows my mind. Not least because I’m not seeing it at Xi’an, a World Heritage site where more than 8000 warriors have been unearthed.

I’m in Perth, where eight of the life-sized figures – plus a horse – have made their way for an internationally exclusive exhibition.

“This is probably the biggest Terracotta Warriors exhibition ever,” curator Tonia Eckfeld tells me. “Eighty-six per cent of the objects have never been to Australia before and nearly half have never travelled outside China.”

I peer at the warriors’ individual facial features, hairdos and varied stances as a sophisticated wall projection of their original colouring – made from tree sap lacquer and pigments – plays in the background.

Life-size figures stand before a wall projection revealing their original colours at Terracotta Warriors: Legacy of the First Emperor.

The artfully illuminated exhibition inside WA Museum Boola Bardip is an exercise in building anticipation. Hundreds of antiquities are presented in the lead-up to the main event, unfurling the story of Qin Shihuang, China’s first emperor. A slow linger reveals the unifying of kingdoms, the building of a 700km-long superhighway and the extraordinary number of items placed in Qin’s vast tomb to ensure a happy afterlife. This is where the warriors come in. Buried in a giant pit 1.5km to the east, the clay army acted as the tomb’s first line of defence.

En route to seeing them, I am met by chariots led by horses once painted white, a seated attendant who kept an eye on things, and carved jade pigs and cicadas that would be placed in hands and mouths for prosperity and rebirth.

Hundreds of priceless artefacts are displayed in the Terracotta Warriors: Legacy of the First Emperor exhibition.

Eckfeld is particularly excited about a bronze swan she requested. “If you look closely, it’s corroded but you can see every line and every feature, even the skin on the feet,” she says.

My favourite artefact is the body armour made from hundreds of stone pieces woven together with bronze clasps. I also marvel at the largest warrior. Standing 195cm tall, he’s one of only 10 generals found in the entire 8000-strong army. Beefy arms lean on what was once a sword as his face wears a beatific expression befitting of someone accompanying their leader to the afterlife.

Eight terracotta warriors are among the artefacts on display in the Perth exhibition.

The final room is a digital dreamscape imagining what Qin’s still-unlocked tomb chamber might be like. Twinkling lights signify a gem-studded ceiling, golden birds take flight and ferns light up in this cleverly interactive scene.

Terracotta Warriors: Legacy of the First Emperor runs until February 22, 2026. 

Multimedia displays help to tell the story of the remarkable Terracotta Warriors.

What to know before you see the Terracotta Warriors:

Around half of the Perth Cultural Centre is undergoing a $55 million transformation project. Expect restricted access paths between the museum and its neighbours, the WA art gallery, state library, state theatre and more, until late 2026.

The exhibition opens after-hours every Friday for Jade Nights, with expert talks, fashion shows, Chinese dances and a themed bar. Book ahead for Chinese art workshops (brush painting and ekphrastic poetry) that kick off with a tea ceremony, held on select Saturdays.

Originally published as 'Mind-blowing': Terracotta Warriors Perth brings stunning new artefacts to Australia