A tourist who dropped her mobile phone into one of pits of the renowned terra cotta warriors was able to share the experience on social media thanks to the museum's helpful staff.
The fumbling visitor to the 2,200-year-old site in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province admits she was not expecting to see her phone again after it slipped from her hand on Wednesday.
"The guide told me that once you drop it into the pit, it becomes a national treasure," read the woman's post on social media platform WeChat.
Accompanying photos taken from above show the phone had landed on a raised platform down Pit No. 3 of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Despite her guide's pessimistic prediction, museum staff returned the phone the next day.
According to museum officials, employees had to wait until the museum closed to retrieve the phone because of the increased number of tourists at the site during the National Day holiday.
With millions of tourists visiting the site every year, dealing with visitors dropping items into the deep pits is a common problem.
"We have professionals that go into the pits and help retrieve lost belongings," said the museum's administrative director, surnamed Liu.
