Gleopatra ，Goddess of the Nile

 

 

Three centuries later, shortly before the birth of Christ, Egypt was still ruled by a living goddess, Cleopatra, a Greek ¹⁾descended from one of Alexander’s generals. She looked back to the Golden Age of ²⁾Alexander’s world empire and was determined¹ to do even better herself.

Alexander died at the age of 32. By the time Cleopatra was 23, she had gone ever further than Alexander making her entrance into Rome as Queen of Egypt and ³⁾consort² of Julius Caesar, the most powerful man in the world.

These were complex times. To keep your ⁴⁾throne, you had to be ⁵⁾adaptable³, ⁶⁾ruthless, intelligent and a great politician. Cleopatra had all these ⁷⁾traits which is why history has provided us with lots of ⁸⁾interpretations of Cleopatra. ⁹⁾Renaissance⁵ poets saw her as a ¹⁰⁾heroine dying for love. And painters ¹¹⁾alluded to her ¹²⁾eroticism in their ¹³⁾bare breasted portrayals⁸ of the dying queen. Hollywood ¹⁴⁾reinforced the image of Cleopatra as a ¹⁵⁾vamp starting with Theda Bara’s ¹⁶⁾seductive portrayal⁷ in 1917.

But who was the real Cleopatra? What did she really look like?

We’re in Berlin because this is the best portrait of Cleopatra in the world. There are very few ancient ¹⁷⁾sculptures that are existing. So this is probably as close as we’re ever going to get to how she really looked. She’s rather plain looking, isn’t she? Look at her hair. It’s tied up in a simple ¹⁸⁾bun. It’s a classical Greek hairstyle. It’s practical but not exactly designed to ¹⁹⁾captivate a Roman general.

We know from ancient sources that her hair was a reddish color, wavy⁹. But look at her nose. It’s a little bit too long and hooked at the end. And her mouth, is not exactly ²⁰⁾sensual. She’s not wearing any jewelry¹⁰. There are no earrings¹¹, no necklace. This is not the portrait of a ²¹⁾femme fatale.

The ancient ²²⁾sources tell us she was intelligent, ²³⁾witty¹², charming, a ²⁴⁾linguist¹³ and along with this, she had a tremendous determination. It was this amazing combination of abilities that made Cleopatra the most famous woman in history. It wasn’t her beauty.

Women in Egypt had always been powerful: Queen ²⁵⁾Hatshepsut, ²⁶⁾Nefertiti and now Cleopatra. But during the era of the ²⁷⁾Ptolemy’s, the role of Greek women had changed. They gained an identity apart from that of their husbands or families. Women participated in the arts and ²⁸⁾civic¹⁴ life and marriage became a union of two people, not just two houses. The portraits of the women of this period show strong individuals looking back at you with confidence. They’re almost ²⁹⁾haunting. Women would not have this power again until the 20th century. Cleopatra was well educated, strong minded with ideas of her own and a female.

As an intellectual, Cleopatra would have been heartbroken: when during fighting between Egyptians and Caesar’s Roman troops, there occurred one of the greatest tragedies of the ancient world Ñ the burning of the library of Alexandria. It’s sad to think about what was lost in the fire at Alexandria. There are the missing ³⁰⁾manuscripts of Aristotle and Plato. They were probably there. There was an entire room with editions of Homer. Maybe even there were early manuscripts of the Old Testament¹⁵, which could probably help settle ³¹⁾Biblical questions today.

 Cleopatra was eventually able to replace 200,000 of the manuscripts. Books were very important to her. It’s ironic¹⁶ that today everybody knows her for her beauty, but it was her intelligence that was the most important ³²⁾asset she had.CE

 

07、埃及艳后----克莉奥帕卓

 

耶酥诞生的三百年后，埃及依然在克莉奥帕卓女王的统治下，她是亚历山大大帝手下一名将领的后代。她一面追怀着亚历山大帝国的黄金时期，一面决意自己做得更出色。

亚历山大于32岁驾崩，当时埃及艳后仅23岁，她远行的疆界比亚历山大更远，她以埃及王后和世界上最有权力的人——朱利安·恺撒情人的身份走进罗马。

当时局面非常复杂。要保住王位则必须是一名灵活、无情、机智兼出色的政客。这些特点埃及艳后全部具备，这也解释了为什么我们会从历史上看到关于她的多种不同说辞。文艺复兴时期的诗人将她视成为爱情献身的女英雄。画家们把她描绘为裸胸垂死的贪欲的女王。好莱坞的电影强化了她的荡妇形像——第一部始于桑德·芭拉在1917年媚人的扮演。

可是埃及艳后究竟是什么样的人？她的外貌是怎样的呢？

于是我们来到了柏林，这儿有全世界最好的埃及艳后的肖像。现在仅存的古代雕像已是凤毛麟角，所以这一尊也许能帮助我们尽多地了解她的外貌。她长得挺平常的，是不是？看看她的头发，结的是个简单的髻。这是希腊古典发型。风格朴实，并非特别设计来俘获罗马将领的爱情。

我们从古代资料了解到她的头发是浅红色的，有波纹的。可瞧她的鼻子，是稍有点长的鹰钩鼻。嘴也算不上性感。她不饰带任何珠宝。没有耳环，没有项链。这并非一个性感尤物的相貌。

古代资料还告诉我们，她聪明、诙谐、迷人、精通多种语言，而且，她还具有惊人的毅力。正是集合了这种种才华而决非美貌，才使得埃及艳后成为历史上最负盛名的女性。

过去，埃及妇女的势力向来不弱，如：哈特谢普苏特女王、奈费尔提蒂女王，以及现在这位克莉奥帕卓女王。但在托勒密王朝时期，希腊妇女的角色改变了。她们取得独立于丈夫和家庭外的身份，参与到艺术和市民生活中，并以两个个人而不是两家人的名义缔结婚姻。这一时期的妇女形像表现出了强烈的个性与自信。那令人印象深刻。21世纪以前妇女们都没再拥有过这种权力。埃及艳后便是受过良好教育、意志坚强、有自己思想的一位女性。

在埃及人与恺撒的罗马军队作战期间发生了古代一大惨剧——亚历山大图书馆的焚毁。作为一位知识人士，这一悲剧定曾让埃及艳后为之哀恸不已。要说出亚历山大图书馆在那次火灾中的损失是令人伤心的。遗失的亚里士多德和柏拉图手稿估计就在其中。有一整个房间里放的是荷马的作品。如果《圣经旧约》的早期文稿没有在那时遗失的话，也许今日我们对《圣经》的许多疑惑已经解开了。

埃及艳后最后找回了二十万册文稿。书籍对她太重要了。讽刺的是她以美貌蜚声于今日世界，而其实智慧才是她最最可贵的资产。CE

 

1) descendant [di5sendEnt] n. 子孙，后裔

2) Alexander，亚历山大，是古代马其顿帝国国王，他曾建立起了横跨欧亚的大帝国。公元前332年，亚历山大率军攻向埃及。当时埃及不满波斯帝国的强暴统治，视亚历山大为救星并将他崇拜为神。

3) consort [5kCnsC:t] v. 使结交，使配对

4) throne [WrEun] n. 王座，君主

5) adaptable [E5dAptEbEl] a. 能适应的，可修改的

6) ruthless [5ru:Wlis] a. 无情的

7) trait [treit] n. 特性

8) interpretation⁴ [intE:pri5teiFEn] n. 解释，阐明

9) renaissance [ri5neisEns] n. 文艺复兴时期

10) heroine [5herEuin] n. 女英雄

11) allude⁶ [E5lju:d] v. 暗指

12) eroticism [i5rCtisizEm] n. 性的兴奋

13) bare [bZEr] a. 赤露的

14) reinforce [ri:in5fC:s] v. 加强

15) vamp [vAmp] n. 荡妇

16) seductive [si5dQktiv] a. 诱人的

17) sculpture [5skQlptFEr] n. 雕刻，雕塑

18) bun [bQn] n. 发髻

19) captivate [5kAptiveit] v. 迷惑，迷住

20) sensual [5sensjuE] a. 肉欲的，世俗的

21) femme fatale n. 性感尤物

22) source [sC:s] n. 原始资料

23) witty [5witi] a. 机智的，诙谐的

24) linguist [5liNgwist] n. 语言学家

25) Queen Hatshepsut（1503-1458 BC ?），埃及女王，是图特摩斯国王一世之女，二世之妻。

26) Queen Nefertiti，(1300’s BC)奈费尔提蒂，公元前14世纪埃及女王，也是埃及国王Akhenaten之妻。

27) Ptolemy [5tClimi] n. 托勒密王朝。古埃及国王托勒密一世（367?-283BC）、二世（308-246BC）在位时期，埃及处于全盛时期。

28) civic [5sivik] a. 市民的，公民的

29) haunting [hC:ntiN] a. 不易忘怀的

30) manuscript [5mAnjuskript] n. 手稿，原稿

31) Biblical [5biblikEl] a. 圣经的

32) asset [5Aset] n. 资产

 

1 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

2 consort   

v.相伴；结交

参考例句：

• They went in consort two or three together.他们三三两两结伴前往。
• The nurses are instructed not to consort with their patients.护士得到指示不得与病人交往。

3 adaptable   

adj.能适应的，适应性强的，可改编的

参考例句：

• He is an adaptable man and will soon learn the new work.他是个适应性很强的人，很快就将学会这种工作。
• The soil is adaptable to the growth of peanuts.这土壤适宜于花生的生长。

4 interpretation   

n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理

参考例句：

• His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
• Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。

5 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。

6 allude   

v.提及，暗指

参考例句：

• Many passages in Scripture allude to this concept.圣经中有许多经文间接地提到这样的概念。
• She also alluded to her rival's past marital troubles.她还影射了对手过去的婚姻问题。

7 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

8 portrayals   

n.画像( portrayal的名词复数 )；描述；描写；描摹

参考例句：

• And painters alluded to her eroticism in their bare breasted portrayals of the dying queen. 画家们把她描绘为裸胸垂死的贪欲的女王。 来自互联网

9 wavy   

adj.有波浪的，多浪的，波浪状的，波动的，不稳定的

参考例句：

• She drew a wavy line under the word.她在这个词的下面画了一条波纹线。
• His wavy hair was too long and flopped just beneath his brow.他的波浪式头发太长了，正好垂在他的眉毛下。

10 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。

11 earrings   

n.耳环( earring的名词复数 )；耳坠子

参考例句：

• a pair of earrings 一对耳环
• These earrings snap on with special fastener. 这付耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 witty   

adj.机智的，风趣的

参考例句：

• Her witty remarks added a little salt to the conversation.她的妙语使谈话增添了一些风趣。
• He scored a bull's-eye in their argument with that witty retort.在他们的辩论中他那一句机智的反驳击中了要害。

13 linguist   

n.语言学家；精通数种外国语言者

参考例句：

• I used to be a linguist till I become a writer.过去我是个语言学家，后来成了作家。
• Professor Cui has a high reputation as a linguist.崔教授作为语言学家名声很高。

14 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

15 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

16 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。