VOA慢速英语2021 大本钟在新的一年里会有新面孔

Big Ben's famous clock will appear in time for it to do its most important yearly¹ activity: marking the start of the New Year for thousands of people on London's streets and millions more watching on television.

著名的大本钟将准时出现，以履行其最重要的年度职责：在新年为伦敦街头的数千人敲响钟声，还有数百万人将在电视上观看这一幕。

The clock tower of Britain's Houses of Parliament² has been hidden in a repair project for over three years.

英国议会大厦的钟楼在修缮过程中已经被挡住了三年多。

Hundreds of workers are involved in the effort to fix the structure built in 1859.

数百名工匠参与了这座建于1859年的建筑的修复工作。

Nick Sturge, project manager for Sir Robert McAlpine's special projects, said removing the scaffolding was an important step in the $107 million project.

罗伯特·麦卡尔平爵士特别项目的项目经理尼克·斯特奇表示，在这个耗资1.07亿美元的项目中，拆除脚手架是重要的一步。

Scaffolding is a movable structure on which workers stand or sit while working high above the ground.

脚手架是一种可移动的结构体，工人在高空工作时可以站在上面或坐在上面。

"By New Year people will start to see a big difference; they'll start to get their tower back," he said.

他说：“到了新年，人们会开始看到很大的不同；他们会重新看到这个钟楼。”

"The roofs will be fully³ visible⁴ along with the four clock faces."

“屋顶和四个钟面将会完全可见。”

Big Ben is an internationally-known symbol of London and Britain's parliamentary democracy⁵.

大本钟是国际知名的伦敦和英国议会民主制的象征。

It is also one of the most photographed places in the city.

它也是被拍照最多的城市景点之一。

The repair work includes replacing parts of the clock faces using handmade glass, Sturge said.

斯特奇说，这次修复包括使用手工玻璃更换钟面上的面板。

The dials' hands, numbers and other details have been repainted bright blue rather than the black long familiar to Londoners.

表盘的指针、数字和其他细节都重新涂上了亮蓝色，而不是伦敦人熟悉的黑色。

Sturge said an early painting of Big Ben showed a color that was confirmed by a paint study to be Prussian blue.

斯特奇说，经油漆分析证实，大本钟早期的水彩颜料显示出的颜色是普鲁士蓝。

Sturge said, "When you stand on the street it's a really nice nod to the past," meaning a recognition⁶ of the building's history.

斯特奇说，“当你站在街上时，新的大本钟配色是对过去致敬，”即对这座建筑的历史的认可。

The symbols of the four parts of the United Kingdom--the thistle, shamrock, leek⁷ and rose--have also been repainted in the colors from the first design of the tower.

英国四个地区的花卉标志——奶蓟草、苜蓿、韭葱和玫瑰——已经重新粉刷成钟楼最初设计时的原始颜色。

The building was called the Clock Tower until 2012 when officials re-named it the Elizabeth Tower in honor⁸ of Britain's Queen.

这座建筑一直被称为钟楼，直到2012年，为了纪念伊丽莎白女王，英国政府官员将其重新命名为伊丽莎白塔。

The tower's Great Bell, or Big Ben, marks the turning of the year with twelve strikes.

塔楼的大本钟的12声撞钟声标志着这一年的转折。

That will be powered by an electric motor January 1.

它将于1月1日由电动机提供动力。

Alex Jeffrey, one of three clockmakers at the Palace of Westminster, said the clock had been transported to Cumbria, in northwestern England, to be taken apart and put back together.

威斯敏斯特宫的三位钟表匠之一亚历克斯·杰弗里说，这座钟已被运往英格兰西北部的坎布里亚郡进行拆卸和重建。

It was a big job.

这是一项艰巨的任务。

"To give you an example, one of the hands weighs about 305 kilograms," he said.

他说：“举个例子，其中一根指针重约305公斤。”

The clock's minute hand, he added, is about 4.3 meters long.

他还说，这座钟的分针大约4.3米长。

The one dial showing the time when the scaffolding comes down is electric-driven.

显示脚手架撤下的时间的表盘是电动的。

But starting in the spring, the gravity-powered clock will operate all four dials as first designed.

但从春季开始，四个大本钟表盘都将由原始的重力驱动时钟再次运行。

"It is famously accurate⁹," Jeffrey said.

杰弗里说：“这是出了名的准确。”

"The Great Clock is designed extremely well and it's accurate to one second to the first strike of each hour."

“大本钟设计得非常好，它精确到每小时第一次敲响的一秒。”

1 yearly   

adj.每年的，一年一度的；adv.一年一次地

参考例句：

• The flower show is a yearly event in our town.我们镇上的花展一年举行一次。
• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。

2 Parliament   

n.议会，国会

参考例句：

• She won a seat in Parliament at the election.她在选举中赢得了议会中的席位。
• The drug was banned by an act of parliament.议会的法案明令禁止该药品。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 visible   

adj.看得见的，明显的，显然的；n.可见物

参考例句：

• It is a visible star in the sky.这是一颗在天空中可见的星星。
• The warning lights were clearly visible.警示信号灯清晰可见。

5 democracy   

n.民主政治，民主制度；民主精神，民主作风

参考例句：

• Democracy is based on good will and mutual understanding.民主建立在善意和相互理解的基础上。
• Did democracy have its beginnings in Athens? 民主制度是创始于雅典吗？

6 recognition   

n.承认，认可，认出，认识

参考例句：

• The place has changed beyond recognition.这地方变得认不出来了。
• A sudden smile of recognition flashed across his face.他脸上掠过一丝笑意，表示认识对方。

7 leek   

n.韭葱

参考例句：

• He is always confusing wheat with leek.他对麦苗和韭菜总是辨别不清。
• He said the dumplings with the stuffing of pork and leek were his favourite.他说他喜欢吃猪肉韭菜馅的饺子。

8 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

9 accurate   

adj.正确无误的；准确的，精确的

参考例句：

• He has made an accurate measurement of my garden.他准确地丈量了我的花园。
• He is always accurate in what he says and does.他说的和做的总是正确无误。