新概念英语Lesson3课文讲解.docxVIP

 PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT 24 Lesson 3 An unknown goddess 无名女神 Some time ago, an interesting discovery was made by archaeologists on the Aegean island of Kea. An American team explored a temple which stands in an ancient city on the promontory of Ayia Irini. The city at one time must have been prosperous, for it enjoyed a high level of civilization. Housesoften three storeys highwere built of stone. They had large rooms with beautifully decorated walls. The city was even equipped with a drainage system, for a great many clay pipes were found beneath the narrow streets. The temple which the archaeologists explored was used as a place of worship from the fifteenth century B. C. until Roman times. In the most sacred room of the temple, clay fragments of fifteen statues were found. Each of these represented a goddess and had, at one time, been painted. The body of one statue was found among remains dating from the fifteenth century B. C. Its missing head happened to be among remains of the fifth century B. C. This head must have been found in Classical times and carefully preserved. It was very old and precious even then. When the archaeologists reconstructed the fragments, they were amazed to find that the goddess turned out to be a very modern-looking woman. She stood three feet high and her hands rested on her hips. She was wearing a full-length skirt which swept the ground. Despite her great age, she was very graceful indeed, but, so far, the archaeologists have been unable to discover her identity. 1 the Aegean island of Kea, 爱琴海的基亚岛。爱琴海是东地中海的一部分，位于希腊半岛和小亚细亚之间。它包括希腊半岛以外的许多岛屿。基亚岛位于希腊半岛东南方的海域里。 2 Ayia Irini, 阿伊亚·依里尼，意为“圣依里尼”， Irini是希腊文，意为“和平” 3 The city at one time must have been prosperous, for it enjoyed a high level of civilization. 这座古城肯定一度很繁荣，因为它曾享有高度的文明。 must have been是对过去的推测。 at one time, 一度。 4 Roman times, 罗马时代。指古罗马（约公元前 200- 公元 400）时期，那时罗马人在欧洲建立了帝国。 5 date from, 追溯到。 6 Classical times, 指古希腊，古罗马时代。 不久之前，在爱琴海的基亚岛上，考古工作者有一项有趣的发现。一个美国考古队在阿伊亚·依里尼海角的一座古城里考