VOA新闻杂志2022--加沙发现2000年前的罗马公墓

2000-year-old Roman Cemetery¹ Found in Gaza

A 2,000-year-old Roman cemetery has been found in the northern Gaza Strip, with the antiquities² ministry³ calling it the most important local discovery of the past ten years.

Gaza is rich with ancient objects. The area has been an important trading spot for many civilizations, from the ancient Egyptians through the Roman empire.

Ruins discovered there include the remains⁴ of an attack by Alexander the Great as well as a Mongol invasion.

A grave is a place where a person is buried. Twenty Roman graves have been located so far and the research team expects to find about 80 in total within the 50-square-meter cemetery. Only two graves have been opened; one contained skeletal remains and some clay jars.

Jamal Abu Rida is director-general of Gaza's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. Abu Rida suggested that researchers believe the graves likely belonged to "senior ranking people" in the Roman empire during the first century.

Unlike Muslim graves from later periods that face north to south, the Roman graves lie east to west, Abu Rida explained.

"We have made several discoveries in the past, this is the most important archaeological discovery in the past 10 years," said Abu Rida.

The area is closed off to journalists and the public while it is organized and made safe for visitors, the ministry said.

The cemetery, which is being supervised⁵ by a French team of experts, was found by a construction crew working on an Egyptian-funded housing project. When they came upon some of the cemetery's large, ancient bricks, they stopped work and called in the experts.

Gaza is run by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which has fought four wars with Israel since 2008.

The conflict has hurt the local economy and officials usually ask international groups to help dig out and preserve archaeological findings, said Abu Rida.

Words in This Story

cemetery – n. a place where dead people are buried

antiquities – n. objects from ancient times

archaeological – adj. of or relating to a science that deals with past human life and activities by studying the bones, tools, etc., of ancient people

1 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

2 antiquities   

n.古老( antiquity的名词复数 )；古迹；古人们；古代的风俗习惯

参考例句：

• There is rest and healing in the contemplation of antiquities. 欣赏古物有休息和疗养之功。 来自辞典例句
• Bertha developed a fine enthusiasm for the antiquities of London. 伯沙对伦敦的古迹产生了很大的热情。 来自辞典例句

3 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

4 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

5 supervised   

v.监督，管理( supervise的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The architect supervised the building of the house. 建筑工程师监督房子的施工。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He supervised and trained more than 400 volunteers. 他指导和培训了400多名志愿者。 来自辞典例句