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The British Museum: Where History Comes Alive 大英博物馆：重现历史，典藏人文

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课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

Taiwan’s National Palace Museum is chock-full of treasures but, just like the rest of us, sometimes it needs a little help from its friends. Luckily, whenever Taiwan’s premier museum is in need of an exciting new exhibit to draw a crowd, it can always count on the British Museum to lend a hand, and a few artifacts. In the past few years, the British Museum has contributed to special exhibitions such as “Treasures of the World’s Cultures” and “The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece.” Many Taiwanese may have had a glimpse of what the British Museum has to offer, but few know about its impressive history.

台湾国立故宫博物院典藏许许多多的珍宝。不过就像我们一样，故宫有时也需要朋友相挺。幸运的是，每当这座台湾首屈一指的博物馆需要一些令人感觉新鲜的展览来吸引人潮时，它总是能仰赖大英博物馆协助提供一些文物。近几年来，大英博物馆曾促成许多特展，例如「世界文明瑰宝：大英博物馆250年收藏展」以及「古希腊人体之美：大英博物馆珍藏馆」。许多台湾人或许都曾一睹大英博物馆的收藏，但却很少人了解其背后令人印象深刻的历史。

The British Museum was founded in 1753 and, at that time, consisted of the collections of a single man, Sir Hans Sloane. Sloane was a doctor by trade, but he was also an avid collector of artifacts from around the world. When he died in 1753, he had over 71,000 items in his possession, and he left all of them to Britain. These were used to establish the museum. It wasn’t until 1759 that the museum was opened to the public. From then on it expanded, thanks to the increasing scope of British’s empire.

大英博物馆建于1753年。当时博物馆的收藏品全来自同一人：汉斯．斯隆爵士。1753年斯隆逝世时留下的收藏品超过七万一千件。他将这些收藏品全留给了英国，成为大英博物馆的创馆基础。1759年，大英博物馆正式开放给民众参观。自此，随着大英帝国版图扩张，博物馆的规模也日益壮大。

In 1802, the British Museum acquired the Rosetta Stone, which was essential to the deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics. Just over a decade later, the museum came to possess the Parthenon sculptures, as an impressive array of Greek, Roman, and Egyptian artifacts came to define its vast collections.

1802年，大英博物馆获得罗塞塔石碑。此石碑对于解读埃及象形文字极为重要。十多年之后，大英博物馆又得到了帕德嫩大理石。还有其他来自希腊、罗马和埃及的多件文物都丰富了大英博物馆的庞大馆藏。

Vocabulary

单词发音

chock-full [ˋtʃɑkˋfʊl] adj. 塞满了的

premier [ˋprimɪɚ] adj. 首位的；首要的

artifact [ˋɑrtɪ͵fækt] n. 手工艺品

glimpse [glɪmps] n. 瞥见；一瞥

avid [ˋævɪd] adj. 热心的，劲头十足的

possession [pəˋzɛʃən] n. 所有物；财产

expand [ɪkˋspænd] v. 扩大；扩充

scope [skop] n. [学科﹑活动﹑书籍等的〕范围

essential [ɪˋsɛnʃəl] adj. 必要的，不可缺的

deciphering [dɪˋsaɪfərɪŋ] n. 解密

hieroglyphics [haɪərəˋglɪfɪks] n. 象形文字

Parthenon [ˋpɑrθə͵nɑn] n. [希腊] 帕台农神庙<雅典>

array [əˋre] n. 一批；一系列；大量[S][（+of）]

define [dɪˋfaɪn] n. 解释，定义

More Information

片语发音

count on 依靠, 依赖

by trade 职业是, 就职业而言  any occupation pursued as a business or livelihood

from then on 从那时起  from that time

课文朗读

课文讲解

The British Museum’s acquisition of antiquities has not been without controversy. British nobleman and diplomat Thomas Bruce, the Earl of Elgin, has a passion for preserving the treasures of ancient Greece through sketches and casts. He put together an artistic team to head to Athens, where he was given access to the Acropolis and permission to sketch, make casts, and dig. He did not have permission to enter the Parthenon, though.

关于大英博物馆如何取得古董文物的争议从未停歇。担任外交大使的额尔金伯爵汤玛士．布鲁斯对于利用素描和制模技术来保存古希腊瑰宝有着满腔热血。他组成了一支艺术家团队前往雅典，并得到允准进入卫城进行素描、制模和挖掘等工作。不过他并未获得进入帕德嫩神庙的许可。

However, Bruce did enter, and he was dismayed by the deteriorating condition the ruling Ottoman Empire had allowed the Parthenon to fall into. So, claiming that he wished to save the artifacts within from suffering damage during the Greek War of Independence, he removed them from the site, cutting the marble sculptures into smaller pieces so that they might be transported. They were purchased by Great Britain in 1816, and remain in the British Museum to this day. Some say that, as museums in Germany, the U.S., and Sweden have done, the British Museum should return the artifacts to their points of origin. Meanwhile, the British Museum counters with, among other arguments, the fact that the Parthenon sculptures are items of global significance and thus should continue to reside in London, one of the world’s largest and most visited cities.

然而布鲁斯还是进去了。他愤然发现鄂图曼帝国未能维护帕德嫩神庙，而任其损毁。因此，以保护文物不受希腊独立战争波及之名，他将神庙的大理石雕刻移走，并将之切割成小块以利运送。这些雕像在1816年被英国买下，直至今日都存放在大英博物馆中。有些人认为，就如同一些德国、美国和瑞典的博物馆一样，大英博物馆也应该将历史文物归还至它们的起源地。同时，大英博物馆则提出许多论点加以反驳，像是帕德嫩雕像属于世界级文物，因此理应安置在伦敦这个全球规模最大、旅客最多的城市之一。

Regardless of this controversy, there’s no disputing the fact that the British Museum remains significant when it comes to experiencing world history firsthand. So, if you have the chance, don’t miss the opportunity to see history come to life at the British Museum.

无论这个争论结果如何，若说到要亲身体验世界历史之美，大英博物馆的重要性是不证自明。所以如果你有机会造访此地，可千万别错过让历史重现的大英博物馆。

－by Joe Henley

Vocabulary

单词发音

acquisition [͵ækwəˋzɪʃən] n. 获得，取得

antiquity [ænˋtɪkwətɪ] n. 古代的遗物；古器物

controversy [ˋkɑntrə͵vɝsɪ] n. 争论，辩论

earl [ɝl]【英】伯爵

sketch [skɛtʃ] n. 素描

cast [kæst] n. 浇铸; 铸型

dismay [dɪsˋme] v. 使沮丧，使气馁

deteriorating [dɪˋtɪrɪə͵retɪŋ] adj. 日益恶化的

counter [ˋkaʊntɚ] v. 反击；反驳

reside [rɪˋzaɪd] v. 居住；驻在

Reading Questions

1.   What is the significance of the Rosetta Stone?

(A)  It has helped us understand ancient Egyptian writing.

(B)  It contains certain minerals that are very valuable.

(C)  It is the world’s oldest piece of art.

(D)  It shows people what life was like in ancient Greece.

2.   Why did Thomas Bruce remove artifacts from the Parthenon?

(A)  He wanted to keep them for himself.

(B)  He wished to start the Greek War of Independence.

(C)  He feared they would be greatly damaged.

(D)  He wanted to give them to their rightful owner.

3.   What do we know about Bruce?

(A)  He entered the Parthenon without official approval.

(B)  He was in Greece illegally.

(C)  He had a past record of stealing priceless artifacts.

(D)  He was the most famous thief of his time.

4.   Which of the following statements about the British Museum is NOT true?

(A)  It lent artifacts to a museum in Taiwan.

(B)  It was founded over 250 years ago.

(C)  It began as the collection of just one man.

(D)  It only contained items found in Britain.

"British Museum". One of the best collections anywhere in the World

BBC RADIO 4 - The Rosetta Stone (1/2). 

BBC RADIO 4 - The Rosetta Stone (2/2).

Parthenon by Costa-Gavras

Parthenon marbles, British museum

Answer