VOA慢速英语2019 新证据表明人类祖先用鲜花埋葬死者

New Evidence Suggest Human Ancestor Buried Dead with Flowers

Neanderthals may have buried and honored their dead, a new study suggests. The early human ancestors may have even used flowers in burials. Scientists recently announced their discovery in the publication Antiquity¹.

一项新的研究表明，尼安德特人可能埋葬并祭奠过死者。早期人类祖先甚至可能在葬礼上用过花。科学家最近在期刊《Antiquity》上宣布了他们的发现。

The scientists found the bones of an adult in Shanidar Cave, in the Kurdistan area of northern Iraq. The Neanderthal, called Shanidar Z, is believed to have lived up to 70,000 years ago. The individual was possibly in his or her 40s or 50s. Scientists do not yet know the sex of the individual.

科学家们在伊拉克北部库尔德斯坦地区的沙尼达尔洞穴发现了一个成年人的骨头。这个尼安德特人，被命名为沙尼达尔Z，认为其生活在7万年前。这个人可能在四五十岁左右。科学家们尚未确定这个人的性别。

The cave where the bones were found is already famous in archaeology². In 1960, archaeologist Ralph Solecki discovered the remains³ of 10 Neanderthals - seven adults and three children.

发现这些骨头的洞穴在考古学上已经很有名了。1960年，考古学家拉尔夫·索莱茨基发现了10具尼安德特人的遗骸--7具成人，3具儿童。

At the time, small amounts of flower pollen⁴ were found in soil around the remains. The discovery led Solecki to propose that Neanderthals buried their dead and even had funeral ceremonies with flowers.

当时，在遗体周围的土壤中发现了少量的花粉。这一发现促使索莱茨基认为尼安德特人会埋葬他们的死者，甚至会用鲜花举行葬礼。

Critics later doubted the "flower burial" explanation. They argued that the pollen could have been modern contamination from people, animals or insects.

批评人士后来对“花葬”的解释表示怀疑。他们认为，花粉可能是现代人类、动物或昆虫的污染造成的。

Shanidar Z's bones were found in soil containing ancient pollen and plant remains, suggesting the possibility of flower burials.

沙尼达尔Z的骨骼是在含有古代花粉和植物遗骸的土壤中发现的，这表明了“花葬”的可能性是存在的。

Scientists are now further examining the materials.

科学家们现在正在进一步研究这些材料。

Scholars have argued for years about whether Neanderthals buried their dead with funeral ceremonies.

多年来，学者们一直在争论尼安德特人是否会在埋葬死者时举行葬礼。

Emma Pomeroy studies ancient humans at the University of Cambridge. She was the lead writer of the recent study.

波默罗伊在剑桥大学研究古人类。她是最近这项研究的主要作者。

She said that what is important about the burial is the aim or purpose behind it. "You might bury a body for purely⁵ practical reasons, in order to avoid attracting dangerous scavengers," she said.

她说举行葬礼背后的目的才是重中之重。她说：“为了避免吸引危险的拾荒者，可能纯粹出于实际原因而埋葬尸体，”

Pomeroy added that if more is done "it is important because that indicates more complex, symbolic⁷ and abstract thinking, compassion⁸ and care for the dead, and perhaps feelings of mourning and loss."

罗伊补充说，如果葬礼的仪式不止这些，“这是很重要的，因为这意味着更复杂的、象征性的和抽象的思维，对死者的同情和关心，也许还有哀悼和失落的感觉。”

Shanidar Z appears to have been placed in an area cut into the soil. The area has a group of four individuals.

沙尼达尔Z似乎被放置在一个切入土壤的区域。这个地区有四具这样的遗骸。

Graeme Barker, a University of Cambridge archeologist, helped write the study. He said the cave may have been used as a burial place for a long period of time. "...It seems clear that Shanidar was a special place, with bodies being placed just in one part of a large cave," he said.

剑桥大学考古学家格兰厄姆·巴克帮助撰写了这项研究。他说这个用于埋葬的洞穴可能已经存在很长时间了。他说：“很明显，沙尼达尔是一个特殊的地方，尸体被安放在一个大洞穴的一个角落里，”

Neanderthals were more strongly built than modern humans, or Homo sapiens. They lived in Eurasia from about 400,000 years ago until around 40,000 years ago. They then disappeared after modern humans became established.

尼安德特人比现代人或智人的体格更强壮。从大约40万年前到4万年前，他们一直生活在欧亚大陆。在现代人类出现之后就消失了。

Modern non-African human populations are believed to carry small amounts of Neanderthal genetic⁹ material known as DNA¹⁰.

现代非非洲人被认为携带有少量的尼安德特人遗传物质DNA。

Words in This Story

Neanderthal – n. a type of early human being that existed very long ago

archaeology – n. science that deals with past human life and activities by studying the bones, tools, etc., of ancient people

pollen – n. a number that indicates the amount of pollen in the air and that is used by people who get sick from breathing in pollen

contamination – n. to make (something) dangerous, dirty, or impure¹¹ by adding something harmful or undesirable¹² to it

practical -- adj. logical and reasonable in a particular situation

scavenger⁶ -- n. an animal that eats waste, junk, dead animals, etc.

indicate -- v. to show that (something) exists or is true

abstract – adj. relating to or involving general ideas or qualities rather than specific people, objects, or actions of art : expressing ideas and emotions by using elements such as colors and lines without attempting to create a realistic picture

1 antiquity   

n.古老；高龄；古物，古迹

参考例句：

• The museum contains the remains of Chinese antiquity.博物馆藏有中国古代的遗物。
• There are many legends about the heroes of antiquity.有许多关于古代英雄的传说。

2 archaeology   

n.考古学

参考例句：

• She teaches archaeology at the university.她在大学里教考古学。
• He displayed interest in archaeology.他对考古学有兴趣。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 pollen   

n.[植]花粉

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。

5 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

6 scavenger   

n.以腐尸为食的动物，清扫工

参考例句：

• He's just fit for a job as scavenger.他只配当个清道夫。
• He is not a scavenger nor just a moving appetite as some sharks are.它不是食腐动物，也不像有些鲨鱼那样，只知道游来游去满足食欲。

7 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

8 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

9 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

10 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

11 impure   

adj.不纯净的，不洁的；不道德的，下流的

参考例句：

• The air of a big city is often impure.大城市的空气往往是污浊的。
• Impure drinking water is a cause of disease.不洁的饮用水是引发疾病的一个原因。

12 undesirable   

adj.不受欢迎的，不良的，不合意的，讨厌的；n.不受欢迎的人，不良分子

参考例句：

• They are the undesirable elements among the employees.他们是雇员中的不良分子。
• Certain chemicals can induce undesirable changes in the nervous system.有些化学物质能在神经系统中引起不良变化。