VOA标准英语2010年-Cleopatra Headlines New Philadelphia E

No matter what image the name Cleopatra conjures¹ up - a seductress who swayed two Roman rulers, the actress Elizabeth Taylor or the tragic² heroine in a play by William Shakespeare - Egypt's last queen continues to fascinate and intrigue³ more than 2,000 years after her death. A new exhibit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, uses several recent discoveries to give visitors a glimpse of the real Cleopatra.
Immersing visitors in the world of Cleopatra is one of the goals of the exhibit "Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt," at the Franklin Institute. The show uses more than 150 artifacts in an attempt to give visitors a sense of Cleopatra's life and times - a mixture of Egyptian, Greek and Roman cultures.
After passing through a dimly-lighted entrance that features artifacts under the floor of the exhibit, a brightly-illuminated stone head of the god Serapis - a composite of the Egyptian deity⁴ Osiris and several Greek gods - stares out at viewers. Two colossal⁵ pink granite⁶ statues from ancient Heracleion also dominate the view. The entire section is bathed in a shimmering⁷ blue light that simulates an underwater environment.
The lighting⁸ effect helps to remind visitors how many of the artifacts were recovered: they were retrieved⁹ from the harbor of modern day Alexandria and the nearby Bay of Aboukir by Egyptologist Franck Goddio and a team of divers¹⁰ from the European Institute of Underwater Archaeology¹¹.
Working since 1992 with ancient sources, 19th Century maps and 20th century magnetic resonance¹² imaging, Goddio's team was able to map the ancient city of Alexandria, erased¹³ by earthquakes, tidal waves, and war. The ancient sites of Canopus and Heracleion, where Cleopatra would have been a high priestess and was crowned Pharaoh, also have been discovered.
Curators also have reassembled most of a prayer altar that contains what may be the first known astrological chart and the ancient Egyptian calendar.
University of Pennsylvania Egyptologist and the head of the Penn Museum's Egyptology section - David Silverman - is curator of the exhibit. He said he hopes it dispels¹⁴ some of the misconceptions about Cleopatra and gives visitors a glimpse of her time.
"People know the name Cleopatra, but what about the history? And they're learning that we don't know all the answers, but they are also learning how we can find out some of the answers," said Silverman.
An accompanying audio tour attempts to provide some answers through an actress portrayal¹⁵ of Cleopatra. Visitors hear the queen describe the artifacts, as well as something of their history and purpose, including those dating from her torrid romance with Mark Antony - a relationship that ended with both of them committing suicide.
"Only glory awaits us," the audio narration¹⁶ by an actress portraying¹⁷ Cleopatra said. "I have chosen to die by the bite of an asp. The poison will slowly pulse through my blood. I will fall into a gentle sleep, and when I awake, I will be with Antony once more."The answer to one question seems elusive¹⁸ in this exhibit - what did Cleopatra actually look like? A headless statue shows a shapely woman wrapped in a wafer-thin Greek dress. Other representations of Egypt's last queen - idealized portraits from temples on the Nile and from official statuary - also are on display. Silverman said some of the smallest artifacts - coins - offer visitors the best glimpse of Cleopatra.
"And these are dated to Cleopatra VII," said Silverman. "And you know, coins are actually closer to what she might have looked like. So she has a rather aquiline¹⁹ nose and a prominent chin and, like many Greeks, probably had curly hair."The last part of the exhibit looks at another mystery surrounding Cleopatra - where is her tomb? Excavations²⁰ by Zahi Hawass, the secretary general of Egypt's Supreme²¹ Council of Antiquities²² highlight this section. Hawass and a team have been excavating²³ a site near Taposiris Magna, about 30 kilometers west of modern Alexandria.
In a video presentation, Hawass makes the case for this site being a probable location of Cleopatra's tomb - there are coins from her time, artifacts from the Roman era, and there also is a large necropolis or burial ground featuring people of noble birth. So far Cleopatra's tomb has not been found but - experts note - only a small percentage of the site has been excavated²⁴.
Silverman said he would not be surprised if the tomb is found where it was least expected - like that of another famous Egyptian leader - Tutankhamen - whose tomb was found in 1922 by Howard Carter in the Valley of the Kings near Thebes.
"And remember the least of the likely spots in the Valley of the Kings that Howard Carter saved for last because it was unlikely, was under the workmen's huts from the later new kingdom," said Silverman. "And he only worked there because it was the last spot left. But it was not where a royal burial should have been and certainly not one from the 18th Dynasty.""Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt" continues at the Franklin institute until January 2, 2011.

1 conjures   

用魔术变出( conjure的第三人称单数 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现

参考例句：

• The word 'birthday' conjures up images of presents and parties. “生日”这个词使人想起礼物和聚会的情景。
• The name Sahara conjures up images of a desert of aridity. "撒哈拉"这个名字使人想起干旱的沙漠情景。

2 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

3 intrigue   

vt.激起兴趣，迷住；vi.耍阴谋；n.阴谋，密谋

参考例句：

• Court officials will intrigue against the royal family.法院官员将密谋反对皇室。
• The royal palace was filled with intrigue.皇宫中充满了勾心斗角。

4 deity   

n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物)

参考例句：

• Many animals were seen as the manifestation of a deity.许多动物被看作神的化身。
• The deity was hidden in the deepest recesses of the temple.神藏在庙宇壁龛的最深处。

5 colossal   

adj.异常的，庞大的

参考例句：

• There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。
• Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。

6 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

7 shimmering   

v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The sea was shimmering in the sunlight. 阳光下海水波光闪烁。
• The colours are delicate and shimmering. 这些颜色柔和且闪烁微光。 来自辞典例句

8 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

9 retrieved   

v.取回( retrieve的过去式和过去分词 )；恢复；寻回；检索（储存的信息）

参考例句：

• Yesterday I retrieved the bag I left in the train. 昨天我取回了遗留在火车上的包。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He reached over and retrieved his jacket from the back seat. 他伸手从后座上取回了自己的夹克。 来自辞典例句

10 divers   

adj.不同的；种种的

参考例句：

• He chose divers of them,who were asked to accompany him.他选择他们当中的几个人，要他们和他作伴。
• Two divers work together while a standby diver remains on the surface.两名潜水员协同工作，同时有一名候补潜水员留在水面上。

11 archaeology   

n.考古学

参考例句：

• She teaches archaeology at the university.她在大学里教考古学。
• He displayed interest in archaeology.他对考古学有兴趣。

12 resonance   

n.洪亮；共鸣；共振

参考例句：

• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments.一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。
• The areas under the two resonance envelopes are unequal.两个共振峰下面的面积是不相等的。

13 erased   

v.擦掉( erase的过去式和过去分词 )；抹去；清除

参考例句：

• He erased the wrong answer and wrote in the right one. 他擦去了错误答案，写上了正确答案。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He removed the dogmatism from politics; he erased the party line. 他根除了政治中的教条主义，消除了政党界限。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 dispels   

v.驱散，赶跑( dispel的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• This landmark case dispels the absolute finality of this dreaded disease. 这个划时代的病例终于改观了这可怕疾病的绝对结局。 来自辞典例句
• Charles's experience--and that of all other researchers I have met--dispels many myths about water buffaloes. 查尔斯以及我所见到的其他研究人员的经验破除了关于水牛的许多奇谈。 来自辞典例句

15 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

16 narration   

n.讲述，叙述；故事；记叙体

参考例句：

• The richness of his novel comes from his narration of it.他小说的丰富多采得益于他的叙述。
• Narration should become a basic approach to preschool education.叙事应是幼儿教育的基本途径。

17 portraying   

v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The artist has succeeded in portraying my father to the life. 那位画家把我的父亲画得惟妙惟肖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ding Ling was good at portraying figures through careful and refined description of human psychology. 《莎菲女士的日记》是丁玲的成名作，曾引起强烈的社会反响。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

18 elusive   

adj.难以表达(捉摸)的；令人困惑的；逃避的

参考例句：

• Try to catch the elusive charm of the original in translation.翻译时设法把握住原文中难以捉摸的风韵。
• Interpol have searched all the corners of the earth for the elusive hijackers.国际刑警组织已在世界各地搜查在逃的飞机劫持者。

19 aquiline   

adj.钩状的，鹰的

参考例句：

• He had a thin aquiline nose and deep-set brown eyes.他长着窄长的鹰钩鼻和深陷的褐色眼睛。
• The man has a strong and aquiline nose.该名男子有强大和鹰鼻子。

20 excavations   

n.挖掘( excavation的名词复数 )；开凿；开凿的洞穴（或山路等）；（发掘出来的）古迹

参考例句：

• The excavations are open to the public. 发掘现场对公众开放。
• This year's excavations may reveal ancient artifacts. 今年的挖掘可能会发现史前古器物。 来自辞典例句

21 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

22 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

23 excavating   

v.挖掘( excavate的现在分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘

参考例句：

• A bulldozer was employed for excavating the foundations of the building. 推土机用来给楼房挖地基。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A new Danish expedition is again excavating the site in annual summer digs. 一支新的丹麦探险队又在那个遗址上进行一年一度的夏季挖掘。 来自辞典例句

24 excavated   

v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘

参考例句：

• The site has been excavated by archaeologists. 这个遗址已被考古学家发掘出来。
• The archaeologists excavated an ancient fortress. 考古学家们发掘出一个古堡。 来自《简明英汉词典》