2006年VOA标准英语-New York Exhibit Explores Historical Fascinatio

By Amanda Cassandra
New York
29 November 2006

Gold prices have reached record highs this year, fueling new interest in gold as an investment.  But the allure¹ extends far beyond its monetary² value.  Its importance as a natural resource, as a commodity and as a status symbol is the subject of an exhibit in New York.  From VOA's New York Bureau, Correspondent Barbara Schoetzau has a report written by Amanda Cassandra.

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Screenshot from amnh.org

The gold exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History features 700 natural and ornamental³ pieces of gold, tracing the precious metal's journey from its formation through the mining process to its use in various industries and trades throughout the centuries.

Museum president Ellen Futter says the Gold exhibit is part of an ongoing⁴ series that explores the connection between the science and culture of natural materials. Previous exhibits have focused on amber⁵, diamonds and pearls. But Futter says gold has an unparalleled status in society.

"Athletes strive for gold medals, kindergartners look for gold stars, musicians hope for gold records," she says.  "Prospectors⁶ panned in the Wild West, pirates pillaged⁷ for it and Renaissance⁸ painters applied⁹ it to their canvases as halos to indicate supreme¹⁰ holiness. And, in the simple wedding band, it is worn as a representation of the steadfastness¹¹ of love. Gold, how could one mineral have so many associations? As Shakespeare aptly wrote of gold: What can it not do or undo¹²?"

George Milling-Stanley is a manager at the World Gold Council, an association of the world's leading gold producers dedicated¹³ to the promotion¹⁴ of gold. He says although 78 percent of all gold mined is used for jewelry¹⁵, the exhibition highlights the multitude of uses for the precious metal.

"The exhibits include the visor from the helmet Neil Armstrong wore when he went to the moon," he notes.  "It looks a beautiful gold color; it is not done for the beauty. It is done for the functionality. It reflects the heat best, it reflects radiation best and it was the safest possible material they could use for those visors for people traveling into space. The fact that gold doesn't react with anything in the environment means it has the most amazing list of medical and scientific uses."

Co-curator Charles Spencer heads the museum's anthropology¹⁶ department. He says gold has amazing natural properties, but its real value comes from society.

"In the exhibit you will see a 4,500-year-old golden headband from Iran," he explains.  "A century old gold mask pendant from Ghana. A 3,000-year-old gold bottle from Peru, a 1,200-year-old chief's gold helmet from Panama, a 700-year-old gold bell in the form of the Aztec fire deity¹⁷ from Mexico and a century old coffee pot from New York City.  We do celebrate [cultural] diversity in the gold exhibit. And yet, cross-cutting this diversity there is also a unity¹⁸ that I think reflects the central meaning of gold to all the peoples who have used it. This central meaning has to do with the use of gold as a status symbol to transmit information about the relative social position of the people who possessed¹⁹ it, wore it and spent it."

Gold is coveted²⁰ because of its rarity.

Scientists say that only 152,000 metric tons of gold have ever been mined since the metal's discovery over 6,000 years ago. In comparison, each year 907 million metric tons of iron is mined.

Co-curator James Webster says the quest for gold by humans led to major migrations²¹ to previously²² unexplored regions of land.

"In South Africa, in Australia, in the United States, in Canada and in Russia, people on their own would strike it out [seek it out]," he says.  "It was not a government or state that was looking for gold. Individuals could go out, stake a claim and work hard and find gold on their own.  And that really led to a lot of expansions, settlement of portions of the periphery²³, the coastlines in much of Australia, much of California. These remote terrains²⁴, these remote regions were really settled and developed because of this search for gold and the people who had to supply the materials. The food, the other materials for the miners themselves."

Milling-Stanley says the historical fascination²⁵ with gold has grown, as more people have been able to afford the precious metal.

"Out of every billion atoms in the world, only five would be gold, if we were to take a representative sample so it is extremely rare," he adds.  "It has this amazing list of unique properties that give it all of these diverse, different functions so that there is something to appeal to every possible culture. It used to be the metal for kings and emperors and gradually has become more available that means that people like you and I can wear gold jewelry. It has become a democratic metal."

The treasures on display include examples of the first gold coins minted in ancient Turkey and the largest nugget of gold ever found in the Western Hemisphere, the "Boot of Cortez," weighing 12 kilograms.

Portions of the exhibit are also interactive²⁶, including a scale that visitors can step on to find out their weight in gold, one of the few times one might be happy to see a high number.

The world's largest accumulation of monetary gold, some $147 billion worth of gold bullion²⁷, is held not far from the exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, in the vault²⁸ of the Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

1 allure   

n.诱惑力，魅力；vt.诱惑，引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• The window displays allure customers to buy goods.橱窗陈列品吸引顾客购买货物。
• The book has a certain allure for which it is hard to find a reason.这本书有一种难以解释的魅力。

2 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

3 ornamental   

adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物

参考例句：

• The stream was dammed up to form ornamental lakes.溪流用水坝拦挡起来,形成了装饰性的湖泊。
• The ornamental ironwork lends a touch of elegance to the house.铁艺饰件为房子略添雅致。

4 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

5 amber   

n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的

参考例句：

• Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗？
• This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。

6 prospectors   

n.勘探者，探矿者( prospector的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The prospectors have discovered such minerals as calcite,quartz and asbestos here. 探矿人员在这里发现了方解石、石英、石棉等矿藏。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The prospectors have discovered many minerals here. 探矿人员在这里发现了许多矿藏。 来自辞典例句

7 pillaged   

v.抢劫，掠夺( pillage的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They are to be pillaged and terrorised in Hitler's fury and revenge. 在希特勒的狂怒和报复下，他们还遭到掠夺和恐怖统治。 来自辞典例句
• They villages were pillaged and their crops destroyed. 他们的村子被抢，他们的庄稼被毁。 来自辞典例句

8 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。

9 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

10 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

11 steadfastness   

n.坚定，稳当

参考例句：

• But he was attacked with increasing boldness and steadfastness. 但他却受到日益大胆和坚决的攻击。 来自辞典例句
• There was an unceremonious directness, a searching, decided steadfastness in his gaze now. 现在他的凝视中有一种不礼貌的直率，一种锐利、断然的坚定。 来自辞典例句

12 undo   

vt.解开，松开；取消，撤销

参考例句：

• His pride will undo him some day.他的傲慢总有一天会毁了他。
• I managed secretly to undo a corner of the parcel.我悄悄地设法解开了包裹的一角。

13 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

14 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

15 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

16 anthropology   

n.人类学

参考例句：

• I believe he has started reading up anthropology.我相信他已开始深入研究人类学。
• Social anthropology is centrally concerned with the diversity of culture.社会人类学主要关于文化多样性。

17 deity   

n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物)

参考例句：

• Many animals were seen as the manifestation of a deity.许多动物被看作神的化身。
• The deity was hidden in the deepest recesses of the temple.神藏在庙宇壁龛的最深处。

18 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

19 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

20 coveted   

adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图

参考例句：

• He had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician. 他一直渴望有机会与著名音乐家一起工作。
• Ther other boys coveted his new bat. 其他的男孩都想得到他的新球棒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 migrations   

n.迁移，移居( migration的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It foundered during the turmoils accompanying the Great Migrations. 它在随着民族大迁徙而出现的混乱中崩溃。 来自辞典例句
• Birds also have built-in timepieces which send them off on fall and spring migrations. 鸟类也有天生的时间感应器指导它们秋春迁移。 来自互联网

22 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

23 periphery   

n.(圆体的)外面；周围

参考例句：

• Geographically, the UK is on the periphery of Europe.从地理位置上讲，英国处于欧洲边缘。
• The periphery of the retina is very sensitive to motion.视网膜的外围对运动非常敏感。

24 terrains   

n.地形( terrain的名词复数 )；地面；地域；地带

参考例句：

• Scientists call these pieces exotic or suspect terrains. 科学家们把这些小陆块叫外来或嫌疑地块。 来自辞典例句
• In the western of China are intricate terrains and many hilly regions. 我国西部地区地势复杂，多丘陵。 来自互联网

25 fascination   

n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋

参考例句：

• He had a deep fascination with all forms of transport.他对所有的运输工具都很着迷。
• His letters have been a source of fascination to a wide audience.广大观众一直迷恋于他的来信。

26 interactive   

adj.相互作用的，互相影响的，（电脑）交互的

参考例句：

• The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
• This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。

27 bullion   

n.金条，银条

参考例句：

• In the London bullion market yesterday,the price of gold was steady.昨天伦敦金银市场黄金价格稳定。
• Police have launched a man-hunt for the bullion robbers.警方已大举搜捕抢劫金条的罪犯。

28 vault   

n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室

参考例句：

• The vault of this cathedral is very high.这座天主教堂的拱顶非常高。
• The old patrician was buried in the family vault.这位老贵族埋在家族的墓地里。