纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 045阿拉伯青铜手(3)

"What they have done so carefully is the impression of the veins¹, which would probably go against it being some form of amputation², because if a hand was amputated the veins would be empty, because obviously the blood drains out.These are very carefully crafted, and really quite beautiful.

制作者非常用心地制作出血管的效果，因此这不太可能是截肢。如果手被切下来，血管一定会因失血而干瘪手上的这些细节都经过精心打造，十分精美。

"I'm sure this is a human hand, but there are certain things that are slightly odd about it.The nails, the 'spoon-shaped' nails, are really indicative of someone who potentially might have anaemia, for some reason; the fingers are really thin and spindly, and also there is this deformity of the little finger, which I think has probably been broken at some stage, at the end of it."

我敢肯定这是一只真人手的模型，不过其中有些奇怪的地方。比如指甲全部呈汤勺状凹陷，显示出它的主人曾患过贫血症。此外，手指细弱纤长，且小指略有变形，我想应该曾折断过。

It's small medical details like these that, after 1,700 years of oblivion, bring Wahab Ta'lab back to life.I find myself wondering how old he was.The veins on the back of the hand are very prominent.And, above all, wondering how he broke his little finger.Was it perhaps in battle? It doesn't look as though it was in the fields-this doesn't seem like the hand of a labourer.A fortune-teller of course would look at once for the lines on the palm of the hand, but the palm of this hand has been left unworked.There are lines, though, but they're on the back, and they're lines of text.They're written in an ancient Yemeni language which is linked both to modern Hebrew and to Arabic, and the inscription³ tells us what this object was for, and where it was displayed:

在被人遗忘了一千七百多年后，这些微小的医学细节又让瓦哈·塔拉布复活了。我发现自己在揣测他的年纪—他手背上的血管非常突出—而我最想了解的还是他的小指为何折断。是在战场上受的伤吗？我感觉不会是在田里一这不像是一个体力劳动者的手。算命师肯定首先想看看他的掌纹，但这只手的掌心一片空白。确实有些线条，不过雕在手背上，是古老的也门文字。古也门语与现代希伯来语和阿拉伯语都有关联。文字记录了铜手的制作目的及展示地点：

"Son of Hisam, the Yursamite, subject of the Banu Sukhaym, has dedicated⁴ for his well-being⁵ this his right hand to their patron in his the god's shrine⁶ dhu-Qabrat."

巴努·苏克因的子民，尤塞麦特族人希山姆之子献上自己的右 手给他们的保护神塔拉布·里阳，敬奉于萨法城杜卡布拉特神庙, 祈求福社。

1 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 amputation   

n.截肢

参考例句：

• In ancient India,adultery was punished by amputation of the nose.在古代印度，通奸要受到剖鼻的处罚。
• He lived only hours after the amputation.截肢后，他只活了几个小时。

3 inscription   

n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文

参考例句：

• The inscription has worn away and can no longer be read.铭文已磨损，无法辨认了。
• He chiselled an inscription on the marble.他在大理石上刻碑文。

4 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。

5 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

6 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。