The mausoleum was built on a site with Mt. Lishan to the south and the Weihe River to the north. Records state there were large amounts of gold on the southern side of Mt Lishan, with an abundance of jade on the northern side.

The site was considered an ideal place for the emperor's tomb because of its location. High above sea level, with mountains behind and a river in front, the geography of the site fits well with the concepts of feng shui (pronounced fung shuay), the traditional Chinese system of choosing sites and positions. It was also vast enough to realize the emperor's dream of building his tomb as big as possible to display his majesty and power.

Another reason for the emperor to build his mausoleum here was that this site was also the burial site of his ancestors. The tomb of his father lies only about 10 km to the west.

 The mausoleum above ground level

A Bird View of QinShihuang's Mausoleum	The Burial Mound of Qinshihuang's Tomb

The mausoleum covers 56.25 square km - 78 times the area of the Forbidden City . However, the hill-like grave mound is the only remaining part of the above ground structure. Years of weathering and damage have reduced its total area from the original 250,000 sq m to 120,000 sq m. and its height from 115 m to 87 m.

Contemporary archeologists have reproduced on canvas some of the grandeur of the mausoleum based on the site's ruins. It was designed in accordance with the layout of the emperor's capital, Xianyang, 25 km northwest of Xi'an. The tomb was enclosed by two walls; an inner city wall and an outer city wall, forming the shape of the Chinese character hui (meaning to return). Some palaces and homes of workers in charge of gardens and temple s are among the above ground structures discovered so far.

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