1.35亿美元-天价油画之最

As the world's most expensive painting was carefully uncrated in New York.The new owner waited to see the work that literally² cost him a fortune.

I just absolutely adore it.

Gustav Klimt's gilded³ masterpiece,the portrait of Adele,cost Ronald Lauder a record-breaking 135 million dollars. Did you hold your breath for a moment, saying, you know, I don't know if I can do this? Sometimes ,now I look back and say ‘how did I do it’.Er,but at the moment when it was a question of buying it, it took me about 2 seconds to say "Yes."

In his first television interview since buying the work, Lauder said today it would become the star of his museum. The Neue Galerie, a lifelong collector. Each piece, I remember when I got it...

He's heir to the Estée Lauder cosmetics⁴ fortune and worth an estimated 2.7 billion dollars. But I have to imagine that even for you; this is a lot of money. Er,this was not a question of money, This was a question of something so special.This piece is priceless.

Klimt painted Adele Bloch-Bauer in 1907, the daughter of a Jewish sugar magnate. She was reported to be the artist's lover. But in 1938, when the Nazis⁵ invaded Austria, the painting was looted. After an epic⁶ legal battle, Adele's portrait was finally returned to her heirs in Los Angeles earlier this year. They then decided⁷ to sell it.

On the final leg of its incredible journey, the gold portrait was brought from Los Angeles in an unmarked armored truck shadowed by 2 security cars. They traveled non-stop for 3 days and nights across the country to bring the world's most expensive painting here to New York.

Maria Altmann, Adele's 90-year-old niece, came to see her aunt's portrait today and said the painting. "He's found its home here. It makes us all very happy. “Installed behind bullet-proof glass, the shimmering⁸ Adele will soon be on public display. The painting's price tag is now as rich as its history.

Anthony Mason, CBS News , New York.

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uncrate:remove from the crate¹ 打开....包装
gilded:covered with a very thin layer of gold 镀金的
magnate:a successful and important person with a lot of power in a particular industry 富豪,大资本家
epic:relating to the writing of epics,an epic fight or other activity is long and difficult 大规模的
shimmering:glistening tremulously 微光闪烁的

1 crate   

vt.(up)把…装入箱中；n.板条箱，装货箱

参考例句：

• We broke open the crate with a blow from the chopper.我们用斧头一敲就打开了板条箱。
• The workers tightly packed the goods in the crate.工人们把货物严紧地包装在箱子里。

2 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

3 gilded   

a.镀金的，富有的

参考例句：

• The golden light gilded the sea. 金色的阳光使大海如金子般闪闪发光。
• "Friends, they are only gilded disks of lead!" "朋友们，这只不过是些镀金的铅饼！ 来自英汉文学 - 败坏赫德莱堡

4 cosmetics   

n.化妆品

参考例句：

• We sell a wide range of cosmetics at a very reasonable price. 我们以公道的价格出售各种化妆品。
• Cosmetics do not always cover up the deficiencies of nature. 化妆品未能掩饰天生的缺陷。

5 Nazis   

n.（德国的）纳粹党员( Nazi的名词复数 )；纳粹主义

参考例句：

• The Nazis worked them over with gun butts. 纳粹分子用枪托毒打他们。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Nazis were responsible for the mass murder of Jews during World War Ⅱ. 纳粹必须为第二次世界大战中对犹太人的大屠杀负责。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 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