An exhibition to show the archaeological finds of Qin culture and Xirong culture before the Qin Dynasty (221 – 201 BC) was kicked off on Thursday in Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum in Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province.

Sponsored by Shaanxi provincial department of cultural heritage and Gansu provincial department of cultural heritage, the three-month exhibition displays 128 groups of more than 300 pieces of cultural relics which are collected by 5 museums and institutes in the two provinces, to display the findings of research into early Qin culture, a project approved by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage in 2004 and carried out by Gansu provincial department of cultural heritage with support from Shaanxi and Beijing.

The archaeological teams for the project excavated and investigated nearly 70 ancient ruins and tombs in the past 10 years in the eastern part named Xirong of Gansu province, where the people of the Qin kingdom – precursor of the Qin Dynasty – lived and practiced Qin culture.

The Qin Dynasty has special significance in Chinese history as it was the first unified feudal dynasty and Qin terra-cotta warriors and horses are known all over the world. The exhibition will help people learn about where the great Qin Dynasty and Qin culture came from and how the early Qin people built a unified feudal dynasty.