纪录片《文明》 第40期 自视如何（1）

This colossal¹ stone head is almost 3,000 years old.

这座巨大的石雕头像差不多有三千年历史了

It was made by the Olmec,

它是奥尔梅克文明的产物

the earliest civilisation² in Central America.

中美洲最早的文明

It really is big.

它真的很大

His eyeballs are more than a foot across

他的眼球直径超过三十厘米

and he weighs in at almost 20 tonnes.

重达二十吨

Between his lips, you can just about glimpse his teeth.

双唇之间 可以瞥见他的牙齿

And his irises³ are traced out on his eyes,

虹膜描绘出他眼球的轮廓

and he has a furled, slightly frumpy brow.

他还有蜷曲散乱的眉毛

It's hard not to feel just a little bit moved by this close encounter

这样近距离地面对这尊远古人像

with the image of a person from the distant past.

你很难完全不被触动

Since it was unearthed⁴ in 1939,

自从它于1939年出土

this head has been a real puzzle.

这座头像一直是个大谜团

Who does it depict⁵?

它雕刻的是谁

Why was it made?

为什么制作它

And why just a head?

为什么只是一颗头

1 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。

2 civilisation   

n.文明，文化，开化，教化

参考例句：

• Energy and ideas are the twin bases of our civilisation.能源和思想是我们文明的两大基石。
• This opera is one of the cultural totems of Western civilisation.这部歌剧是西方文明的文化标志物之一。

3 irises   

n.虹( iris的名词复数 )；虹膜；虹彩；鸢尾（花）

参考例句：

• The cottage gardens blaze with irises, lilies and peonies. 村舍花园万紫千红，鸢尾、百合花和牡丹竞相争艳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The irises were of flecked grey. 虹膜呈斑驳的灰色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

5 depict   

vt.描画，描绘；描写，描述

参考例句：

• I don't care to see plays or films that depict murders or violence.我不喜欢看描写谋杀或暴力的戏剧或电影。
• Children's books often depict farmyard animals as gentle,lovable creatures.儿童图书常常把农场的动物描写得温和而可爱。