Lesson 3

Some time ago, an interesting discovery was made by archaeologists on the Aegean island of Kea.
一段时间以前，考古学家在爱琴海的基亚岛上有一个有趣的发现。
An American team explored a temple which stands in an ancient city on the promontory of Ayia Irini.
一支美国考察队在阿基亚·伊里尼海岬的一座古城里探索了一座庙宇。
The city at one time must have been prosperous, for it enjoyed a high level of civilization.
这座城市曾经一定非常繁荣，因为它享有高度的文明。
Houses — often three storeys high — were built of stone.
房屋——通常有三层楼高——是由石头建成的。
They had large rooms with beautifully decorated walls.
他们拥有墙壁装饰精美的宽敞房间。
The city was even equipped with a drainage system, for a great many clay pipes were found beneath the narrow streets.
这座城市甚至配备了一套排水系统，因为在狭窄的街道下方发现了大量的陶土管。
The temple which the archaeologists explored was used as a place of worship from the fifteenth century B.C. until Roman times.
考古学家们探索的那座神庙，从公元前15世纪直到罗马时代一直被用作祭祀场所。
In the most sacred room of the temple, clay fragments of fifteen statues were found.
在寺庙最神圣的房间里，发现了十五尊雕像的陶土碎片。
Each of these represented a goddess and had, at one time, been painted.
这些中的每一个都代表了一位女神，并且曾经都被粉刷过。
The body of one statue was found among remains dating from the fifteenth century B.C.
一座雕像的身体在追溯至公元前15世纪的遗骸中被发现。
Its missing head happened to be among remains of the fifth century B.C.
它缺失的头部碰巧在公元前五世纪的遗骸之中
This head must have been found in Classical times and carefully preserved.
这个头像一定是在古典时期被发现并被仔细保存下来的。
It was very old and precious even then.
甚至在那个时候，它就已经非常古老而珍贵了。
When the archaeologists reconstructed the fragments, they were amazed to find that the goddess turned out to be a very modern-looking woman.
当考古学家们修复了这些碎片时，他们惊讶地发现那位女神结果竟然是一个样貌非常现代的女人。
She stood three feet high and her hands rested on her hips.
她身高三英尺，双手叉腰站着。
She was wearing a full-length skirt which swept the ground.
她穿着一件拖地的长裙。
Despite her great age, she was very graceful indeed, but, so far, the archaeologists have been unable to discover her identity.
尽管她年事已高，但她确实非常优雅，可是到目前为止，考古学家们一直无法发现她的身份。