羊皮卷的故事（1）

Hafid lingered before the bronze mirror, and studied his reflected image in the polished metal. Only the eyes, have retained their youth, he murmured

海菲在铜镜前徘徊， 打量着自己。 只有眼睛还和年轻时一样。

as he turned away, and moved slowly across the spacious¹ marble floor. He passed between black onyx columns rising to support ceilings burnished² with silver and gold,

他一边自言自语着，一边转过身慢慢地在敞亮的大理石地板上走着。 他拖着年迈的步伐 在黑色的玛瑙柱子之间穿行，

and his aging legs carried him past tables carved from Cyprus and ivory. Tortoise shell gleamed from couches, and divans³ and the walls, inlaid with gems⁴,

走过几张雕刻着象牙花饰的桌子。 卧榻和长沙发椅发着龟甲的微光。 镶嵌着宝石的墙壁上，

shimmered⁵ with brocades of the most painstaking⁶ design. Huge palms grew placidly⁷ in bronze vessels⁸ framing a fountain of alabaster⁹ nymphs,

织锦的精美图案闪闪发光。 古铜花盆里，硕大的棕榈枝叶静静地生长着， 沐浴在石膏美人的喷泉中。

while flower boxes, encrusted with gems competed with their contents for attention. No visitor to Hafid's palace could doubt, that he was indeed,

缀满宝石的花坛 和里面的花儿竞相争宠。 凡是来过海菲着座华丽的大厦的客人

a person of great wealth. The old man passed through an enclosed garden, and entered his warehouse¹⁰, which extended beyond the mansion¹¹ for five hundred paces.

都会说他是一个巨富。 老人穿过一个有围墙的花园， 走进大厦的另一边约五百步远的仓房。

Erasmus his chief bookkeeper, waited uncertainly, just beyond the entryway. Greetings sire. Hafid nodded and continued on in silence.

他的总管伊拉玛正在入口处等他。 老爷好。 海菲点了点头，继续默默的走着。

Erasmus followed, his face unable to disguise concern at the master's unusual request for a meeting in this place. Near the loading platforms,

伊拉玛一脸困惑地跟在后面， 他不懂主人为什么选择这个地方会面。 主仆二人走到卸货台边，

Hafid paused to watch goods being removed from baggage wagons¹² and counted into separate stalls. There were wools fine linens¹³ parchment honey

海菲停下脚步，看着一包包货物从马车上台下来， 分门别类地堆放在仓库里。 这些货中有小亚细亚的羊毛、细麻、羊皮纸、蜂蜜、

carpets, and oil from Asia Minor¹⁴; glass figs¹⁵ nuts and balsam from his own country; textiles and drugs from Palmyra;

地毯和油类， 本地生产的玻璃、无花果、胡桃、香精、 帕尔迈拉岛的衣料和药材，

ginger¹⁶ cinnamon and precious stones from Arabia; corn paper granite¹⁷ alabaster, and basalt from Egypt; tapestries¹⁸ from Babylon;

阿拉伯的生姜、肉桂和宝石， 埃及的玉米、纸张、花岗岩、雪花石膏和黑色瓷器， 巴比伦的挂毯，

paintings from Rome; and statues from Greece.

罗马的油画， 以及希腊的雕像。

1 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。

2 burnished   

adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光

参考例句：

• The floor was spotless; the grate and fire-irons were burnished bright. 地板上没有污迹；炉栅和火炉用具擦得发亮。 来自辞典例句
• The woods today are burnished bronze. 今天的树林是一片发亮的青铜色。 来自辞典例句

3 divans   

n.（可作床用的）矮沙发( divan的名词复数 )；（波斯或其他东方诗人的）诗集

参考例句：

4 gems   

growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长

参考例句：

• a crown studded with gems 镶有宝石的皇冠
• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。

5 shimmered   

v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The sea shimmered in the sunlight. 阳光下海水闪烁着微光。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A heat haze shimmered above the fields. 田野上方微微闪烁着一层热气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 painstaking   

adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的

参考例句：

• She is not very clever but she is painstaking.她并不很聪明，但肯下苦功夫。
• Through years of our painstaking efforts,we have at last achieved what we have today.大家经过多少年的努力，才取得今天的成绩。

7 placidly   

adv.平稳地，平静地

参考例句：

• Hurstwood stood placidly by, while the car rolled back into the yard. 当车子开回场地时，赫斯渥沉着地站在一边。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• The water chestnut floated placidly there, where it would grow. 那棵菱角就又安安稳稳浮在水面上生长去了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 alabaster   

adj.雪白的；n.雪花石膏；条纹大理石

参考例句：

• The floor was marble tile,and the columns alabaster.地板是由大理石铺成的，柱子则是雪花石膏打造而成。
• Her skin was like alabaster.她的皮肤光洁雪白。

10 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

11 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

12 wagons   

n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车

参考例句：

• The wagons were hauled by horses. 那些货车是马拉的。
• They drew their wagons into a laager and set up camp. 他们把马车围成一圈扎起营地。

13 linens   

n.亚麻布( linen的名词复数 )；家庭日用织品

参考例句：

• All linens and towels are provided. 提供全套日用织品和毛巾。 来自辞典例句
• Linen, Table Linens, Chair Covers, Bed and Bath Linens. Linen. 采购产品亚麻布，亚麻布，椅子套子，床和沭浴亚麻布。 来自互联网

14 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

15 figs   

figures 数字，图形，外形

参考例句：

• The effect of ring dyeing is shown in Figs 10 and 11. 环形染色的影响如图10和图11所示。
• The results in Figs. 4 and 5 show the excellent agreement between simulation and experiment. 图4和图5的结果都表明模拟和实验是相当吻合的。

16 ginger   

n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气

参考例句：

• There is no ginger in the young man.这个年轻人没有精神。
• Ginger shall be hot in the mouth.生姜吃到嘴里总是辣的。

17 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。

18 tapestries   

n.挂毯( tapestry的名词复数 )；绣帷，织锦v.用挂毯（或绣帷）装饰( tapestry的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The wall of the banqueting hall were hung with tapestries. 宴会厅的墙上挂有壁毯。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rooms were hung with tapestries. 房间里都装饰着挂毯。 来自《简明英汉词典》