VOA标准英语2009年-Stonehenge Extension Found

By Sarah Williams
08 October 2009

Interview with Mike Parker Pearson, University of Sheffield, UK
Download  (MP3)

 
               Stonehenge
British archeologists have found evidence of an ancient site related to the world-famous Stonehenge in southwest England.  The discovery, called Blue Stonehenge, is located on the west bank of the River Avon, about 2.8 kilometers from Stonehenge. The discovery is called Blue Stonehenge, after the bluestones that once stood at the riverside site and now probably stand within the center of Stonehenge.

"We think we know everything about Stonehenge, it's been combed over by archeologists for centuries," said Mike Parker Pearson, professor at the University of Sheffield and director of the Stonehenge Riverside Project. "And yet something as significant as this has taken this long to discover."The site was undetected because it was deeply buried near the river.

Funeral Complex Theory

The Avon site apparently¹ had a significant relationship to Stonehenge. "We've been developing a theory, a hunch² if you like, that the river was absolutely central for Stonehenge, and the people who used Stonehenge," said Pearson. "We've been looking at the idea that in fact that Stonehenge was just one-half of a much larger complex, linked by the River Avon with a timber³ settlement upstream that in turn was linked to the river by an avenue that we found back in 2005."

Archeologists believe that Stonehenge could be part of a funeral complex. They speculate⁴ that bodies were transported on the river to the newly discovered site, Blue Stonehenge, cremated⁵ there, and then buried at Stonehenge.

Another interesting component⁶ is the bluestones themselves. "They are a very unusual type of rock, it's not just one particular type, it's a series of them, but the interesting factor is that they come from Wales," said Parker Pearson.

Scientists believe the stones were dragged to the site from Welsh mountains about 240 kilometers away, a vast distance at that time. "One of the theories is that these stones were used as legitimators for people moving into new areas, into the Stonehenge area at the beginning of farming in Britain, just after 4000 B.C.," said Parker Pearson. "And that's a theory that we're looking at as whether these were actually the symbols of ancestorhood and belonging to the land."

Further tests will be conducted through radiocarbon dating to determine a construction timeline.

 

1 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

2 hunch   

n.预感，直觉

参考例句：

• I have a hunch that he didn't really want to go.我有这么一种感觉，他并不真正想去。
• I had a hunch that Susan and I would work well together.我有预感和苏珊共事会很融洽。

3 timber   

n.木材，原木，大木料，栋木

参考例句：

• These trees need more time to grow into useful timber.这些树不够年头，还没成材呢。
• The timber is graded according to its thickness.木材按厚度分级。

4 speculate   

v.推测，推断，投机，做投机买卖

参考例句：

• It's dangerous to speculate.做投机买卖是很危险的。
• We don't know all the circumstances,so it would be pointless to speculate.我们不了解所有的情况，妄加推测是没有意义的。

5 cremated   

v.火葬，火化（尸体）( cremate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He wants to is cremated, not buried. 他要火葬，不要土葬。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The bodies were cremated on the shore. 他们的尸体在海边火化了。 来自辞典例句

6 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。