A close-up look at one of the life-sized terracotta warrior statues. (Associated Press)China's famed terracotta warriors are heading for Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum later this year.

The museum confirmed Wednesday afternoon that final negotiations are underway to stage an exhibition of the famed Qin dynasty soldier figures.

Further details are to be revealed later this month.

Landmark discovery

Peasants digging a well in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, in 1974 stumbled upon a massive tomb later confirmed to be that of Chinese emperor Qin Shihuang Di, the leader credited with taking over warring states to create a unified empire and initiating construction of the Great Wall of China.

More than 2,200 years old, the tomb was guarded by rows upon rows of intricately produced, life-sized Qin-era soldier figures, their horses and weapons as well as decorative items.

Archeologists continue to study the dig site today and the tomb is considered among the great archeological discoveries of the 20th century.

London, North American stops

The terracotta warriors, along with a host of other clay figures, were discovered guarding the tomb of Emperor Qin in the Chinese city of Xi'an. (Eric Feferberg/AFP/Getty)In the past few years, Chinese officials have approved a few international displays of the iconic artifacts, notably the blockbuster, record-breaking run at the British Museum in London, from late 2007 through early 2008.

Since 2008, the exhibition — which Chinese officials have described as the largest display of the Terracotta Army seen outside of China — has been on a U.S. tour of just a handful of museums. The U.S. leg is set to end at the National Geographic Society Museum in Washington, D.C., on March 31.

Montreal's Musée des Beaux-Arts had announced in November that it would host the touring exhibit in February 2011, as part of its 150th anniversary season.

The warriors display will be another prestigious, international showcase for the ROM. The museum just closed its six-month exhibit of the Dead Sea Scrolls, which helped push the ROM's annual visitor attendance figures past one million for 2009.