遗失的法老城市15

　　The modern day town of Qantir is a jumbled¹ collection of ramshacklebuildings typical of a delta² town today. Judging by its central position onthe scan. It is almost certainly sitting slap-bang on the top of Ramesses II’s palace.
According to accounts of the time, Ramesses the Great’s palace was vast.
The heart of the city adorned³ with monuments celebrating his rule andlongevity. The outside walls would have dazzled painted white and decoratedwith glaze⁴ tiles.
As incredible as the scan of Piramesse is, all it provides us with is thefootprints of the city’s once impressive architecture. But we can get aglimpse of what it must once have looked like from other sites whereRamesses the Great’s influence was felt.
“The vast majority of the temple the Ramesses II’s time are now lost.
However when one looks at the the great pylon⁵ he erected⁶ at Luxor Temple,when you look at some of its constructions at Karnak, and also its slightlylater temple Madinat Habu. On gets a flavor of what the buildings that oncedominated the city of Piramesse might have looked like.”
With such a large expanse of the city laid bare, the scan had one moresecret to reveal. These bare areas showed where lakes, canals and waterwaysran through Piramesse fed by the Nile. This final piece of the jigsawcompleted the picture and showed just how unique Piramesse truly was. Itcontained huge temples, palatial⁷ riverside villas⁸ of the wealthy. Windingcramp streets of less well-heeled neighborhoods. And the site of the palaceof the pharaoh himself. But it was Ramesses the Great’s choice of locationwithin the Nile Delta that made the city so unique. With canals fed by thewaters of the Nile, Piramesses was quite simply the Venice of its day.

1 jumbled   

adj.混乱的；杂乱的

参考例句：

• Books, shoes and clothes were jumbled together on the floor. 书、鞋子和衣服胡乱堆放在地板上。
• The details of the accident were all jumbled together in his mind. 他把事故细节记得颠三倒四。

2 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

3 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

4 glaze   

v.因疲倦、疲劳等指眼睛变得呆滞，毫无表情

参考例句：

• Brush the glaze over the top and sides of the hot cake.在热蛋糕的顶上和周围刷上一层蛋浆。
• Tang three-color glaze horses are famous for their perfect design and realism.唐三彩上釉马以其造型精美和形态生动而著名。

5 pylon   

n.高压电线架，桥塔

参考例句：

• A lineman is trying to repair the damaged pylon.线务员正试图修理被损坏的电缆塔。
• Erection of the pylon required a crane of 1000 ton capacity.塔架安装需用起重量达1000吨的吊机。

6 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

7 palatial   

adj.宫殿般的，宏伟的

参考例句：

• Palatial office buildings are being constructed in the city.那个城市正在兴建一些宫殿式办公大楼。
• He bought a palatial house.他买了套富丽堂皇的大房子。

8 villas   

别墅，公馆( villa的名词复数 )； （城郊）住宅

参考例句：

• Magnificent villas are found throughout Italy. 在意大利到处可看到豪华的别墅。
• Rich men came down from wealthy Rome to build sea-side villas. 有钱人从富有的罗马来到这儿建造海滨别墅。