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VOA标准英语2012--US Government, Sotheby's Battle over Ancient Khmer Warrior Statue

时间：2012-04-13 06:34:28

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（单词翻译）

US Government, Sotheby's Battle over Ancient Khmer Warrior1 Statue

U.S. prosecutors2 and the Cambodian government say the 1,000-year-old sandstone statue, depicting3 a warrior in the Hindu saga4 The Mahabharata, was looted from the temple of Prasat Chen in the 1960s or 1970s and should be repatriated5. The feet of the statue remain at the temple at Koh Ker, which was briefly6 the capital of ancient Cambodia.

In a civil complaint, federal prosecutors said that Sotheby's knew the statue had been stolen when it offered it for auction7 last year on behalf of a Belgian client who had bought it in 1975, the first time it was sold publicly. The U.S. filing reads like a magazine story, quoting at length from email exchanged between a Cambodian art expert and Sotheby's.
"According to the forfeiture8 complaint, Sotheby's was told by the very expert they hired to authenticate9 and appraise10 the piece, that it was, quote, 'definitely stolen,'" said Tess Davis, an antiquities11 lawyer who is advising the Cambodian government. "And the same scholar actually urged them to consider donating it back to the national Museum of Phnom Penh to, quote, 'save everyone some embarrassment12.'"
In a later email, however, the scholar wrote Sotheby's that it did not appear that Cambodia was requesting the return of all looted artifacts owned by foreign individuals and museums, saying "[I] think that legally and ethically13 you can happily sell the piece." Sotheby's subsequently featured the statue on its catalog cover. It was expected to sell for up to $3 million.
Peter Neiman, an attorney representing Sotheby's, said the statue was purchased legally by the Belgian collector. "We vigorously dispute the government's allegations," he said after the hearing. "Sotheby's acted in good faith and compliance14 with the law at all times here, and we expect the evidence is going to show that this is not stolen property, that it belonged to the consignor15, and Sotheby's acted perfectly16 appropriately in consigning17 it for sale."
In a statement, Sotheby's added that the statue might have been missing from its site for as long as 1,000 years. It said that "condemning18 a public sale process inevitably19 drives those owners of antiquities toward private transactions, an outcome deeply disadvantageous to any and all who claim to be on the side of sensitive and careful handling of this material."
Davis, however, said that much of Cambodia's ancient art was looted during the upheaval20 surrounding Cambodia's civil war, and sold to foreign collectors and museums. "I doubt that anyone who has been working in the field of cultural heritage preservation21 is very surprised by this court proceeding," she said.
The statue, known as the Duryodhana, stood facing another warrior figure, the Bhima, whose feet also remain at the Koh Ker temple site. Davis said challenges to the ownership of that figure, now in the collection of the Norton-Simon Museum in California, might also be raised. 

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1 warrior YgPww     
n.勇士，武士，斗士
参考例句：
  • The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
  • A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。
2 prosecutors a638e6811c029cb82f180298861e21e9     
检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人
参考例句：
  • In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
  • You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。
3 depicting eaa7ce0ad4790aefd480461532dd76e4     
描绘，描画( depict的现在分词 )； 描述
参考例句：
  • a painting depicting the Virgin and Child 一幅描绘童贞马利亚和圣子耶稣的画
  • The movie depicting the battles and bloodshed is bound to strike home. 这部描写战斗和流血牺牲的影片一定会取得预期效果。
4 saga aCez4     
n.(尤指中世纪北欧海盗的)故事，英雄传奇
参考例句：
  • The saga of Flight 19 is probably the most repeated story about the Bermuda Triangle.飞行19中队的传说或许是有关百慕大三角最重复的故事。
  • The novel depicts the saga of a family.小说描绘了一个家族的传奇故事。
5 repatriated da02f9cb12a8b699062b0833e76daf10     
v.把（某人）遣送回国，遣返( repatriate的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
  • The refugees were forcibly repatriated. 难民被强制遣送回国。
  • Ancient artworks were repatriated from the US to Greece. 古代艺术品从美国遣送回希腊。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 briefly 9Styo     
adv.简单地，简短地
参考例句：
  • I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
  • He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。
7 auction 3uVzy     
n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖
参考例句：
  • They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
  • They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。
8 forfeiture 9zMyA     
n.（名誉等）丧失
参考例句：
  • Both face maximum forfeitures of about $1.2 million.双方都面临最高120万美元左右的罚金。
  • If he should break his day,what should I gain by the exaction of the forfeiture?如果他到期不还我从这罚金中又能得到什么好处？
9 authenticate 0u4zr     
vt.证明…为真，鉴定
参考例句：
  • We would have to authenticate your relationship with the boy.我们必须证实一下您和那个孩子的关系。
  • An expert was needed to authenticate the original Van Gogh painting from his imitation.这幅画是凡·高的真迹还是赝品,需由专家来鉴定。
10 appraise JvLzt     
v.估价，评价，鉴定
参考例句：
  • An expert came to appraise the value of my antiques.一位专家来对我的古玩作了估价。
  • It is very high that people appraise to his thesis.人们对他的论文评价很高。
11 antiquities c0cf3d8a964542256e19beef0e9faa29     
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
12 embarrassment fj9z8     
n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫
参考例句：
  • She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
  • Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。
13 ethically CtrzbD     
adv.在伦理上，道德上
参考例句：
  • Ethically , we have nothing to be ashamed about . 从伦理上说，我们没有什么好羞愧的。
  • Describe the appropriate action to take in an ethically ambiguous situation. 描述适当行为采取在一个道德地模棱两可的情况。
14 compliance ZXyzX     
n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从
参考例句：
  • I was surprised by his compliance with these terms.我对他竟然依从了这些条件而感到吃惊。
  • She gave up the idea in compliance with his desire.她顺从他的愿望而放弃自己的主意。
15 consignor dc334384a6c7209e9f51fae8df429846     
n.委托者；发货人；寄件人；交付人
参考例句：
  • A dead body of a male adult, a dead consignor, a target. 一具男人的尸体，一位死去的委托者，一个目标。 来自互联网
  • Frozen plant of company many invest in, attract consignor thick as hail. 公司大量投资于冷冻设备，吸引货主纷至沓来。 来自互联网
16 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地
参考例句：
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
17 consigning 9a7723ed5306932a170f9e5fa9243794     
v.把…置于（令人不快的境地）( consign的现在分词 )；把…托付给；把…托人代售；丟弃
参考例句：
  • By consigning childhood illiteracy to history we will help make poverty history too. 而且，通过将儿童文盲归于历史，我们也将改变贫穷的历史。 来自互联网
18 condemning 3c571b073a8d53beeff1e31a57d104c0     
v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地
参考例句：
  • The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
  • I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
19 inevitably x7axc     
adv.不可避免地；必然发生地
参考例句：
  • In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
  • Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。
20 upheaval Tp6y1     
n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱
参考例句：
  • It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
  • The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。
21 preservation glnzYU     
n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持
参考例句：
  • The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
  • The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

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