Detail of Armoured Infantryman, Terracotta, Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) is among the Chinese artifacts that were exhibited at the British Museum. Warriors from the terracotta army will be in Montreal in 2011. (High Museum of Art/Associated Press)

China's terracotta warriors are coming to Montreal in 2011.

The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal will receive rare visit of 14 of the warriors — life-sized replicas of soldiers of the Qin dynasty — it announced on Thursday.

The 14 are among the more than 8,000 life-sized terracotta figures discovered since 1974 near Xi'an, China, and believed to date from the 3rd century B.C.

An exhibit of 20 of the warriors at the British Museum in 2008 was a huge hit.

The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal announced the touring exhibit from China as it unveiled plans for its 150th anniversary in 2010, including exhibits that celebrate the music of Miles Davis and the haute couture design of Jean-Paul Gaultier.

The museum's 2010 attractions begin with an exhibit of glass objects and lamps by 19th century American designer Tiffany.

At the centre of the Tiffany exhibit will be 18 stained glass panels created for a church next door to the museum.

"It will be a source of pride for all Montrealers to discover this heritage which has been forgotten. One can see clearly the genius of Tiffany, which is truly to create a sculpture made of glass," museum director Nathalie Bondil told CBC News, speaking in French.

Bondil is also behind the first retrospective of France's Gaultier, who has been designing haute couture for 35 years.

"It will be an innovative exhibition, very dynamic and including sound, images and innovative ways to display his style — a whole technological challenge," she said.

The Miles Davis exhibit will be held in conjunction with Montreal's annual jazz festival and feature photos of the great trumpeter from its collection.

With files from CBC's Eve Payette