At around 6 pm on May 30, an unexpected incident occurred at the Museum of the Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang in Shaanxi, China. A man suddenly jumped into pit 3 and pushed over two terracotta warriors.

According to eyewitness Xiao Lin, who was visiting the site with a tour guide, he had just entered area when he saw a man jump into the pit — first landing on a middle level, and then jumping further down to the bottom of the pit.

Xiao Lin said he and the other visitors were stunned, shouting, “What are you doing?” The man then stood up, touched the terracotta figures, and pushed them over. Afterward, he lay on the ground covering his face, while onlookers yelled at him.

Xiao Lin added, “Later, the museum was closed, and we were evacuated by staff. I didn’t see how the man was removed from the pit.”

A tour guide at the scene, named Tete, confirmed that the pit is quite deep, and the man jumped straight in. The two toppled terracotta warriors were indeed pushed by him.

According to official information, pit 3 is relatively small, measuring 28.8 metres in length from east to west, 24.57 metres in width from north to south, and 5.2 to 5.4 metres deep from the current ground surface, with a total area of 520 square metres. The pit contains 72 terracotta warriors and horses.

On the evening of the 30th, a museum staff member said that the police are currently handling the case, and it is unclear whether the pit will remain open to the public.