劍橋雅思11Test3Passage1閱讀原文翻譯 The story of silk

劍橋雅思11Test3Passage1閱讀原文翻譯 The story of silk

第1段

Silk is a fine, smooth material produced from the cocoons – soft protective shells – that are made by mulberry silkworms (insect larvae). Legend has it that it was Lei Tzu, wife of the Yellow Emperor, ruler of China in about 3000 BC, who discovered silkworms. One account of the story goes that as she was taking a walk in her husband’s gardens, she discovered that silkworms were responsible for the destruction of several mulberry trees. She collected a number of cocoons and sat down to have a rest. It just so happened that while she was sipping some tea, one of the cocoons that she had collected landed in the hot tea and started to unravel into a fine thread. Lei Tzu found that she could wind this thread around her fingers. Subsequently, she persuaded her husband to allow her to rear silkworms on a grove of mulberry trees. She also devised a special reel to draw the fibres from the cocoon into a single thread so that they would be strong enough to be woven into fabric. While it is unknown just how much of this is true, it is certainly known that silk cultivation has existed in China for several millennia.

絲綢是一種精致，柔順的布料，產(chǎn)自桑蠶（昆蟲幼體）制作出的蠶繭-即其柔軟的起保護(hù)作用的外殼。根據(jù)傳說，是公元前3000年左右統(tǒng)治中國的黃帝的妻子嫘祖發(fā)現(xiàn)了桑蠶。故事是這樣講述的：當(dāng)她在她丈夫的公園里散步時(shí)，發(fā)現(xiàn)桑蠶破壞了幾棵桑樹。她收集了一些蠶繭，并坐下休息一會(huì)兒。當(dāng)她在喝茶的時(shí)候，一粒收集到的蠶繭碰巧掉進(jìn)了熱茶中，開始松散成一根細(xì)絲。嫘祖發(fā)現(xiàn)她可以將這跟細(xì)線纏繞到自己手指上。于是，她說服丈夫讓她在一片桑樹林里養(yǎng)蠶。她還發(fā)明了一種特殊的卷盤來將蠶繭中的纖維紡成絲線，以便它們足夠堅(jiān)韌可以紡成織物。雖然不知道這個(gè)故事里有多少是真實(shí)可信的，但可以確定的是，絲綢的生產(chǎn)已經(jīng)在中國存在了好幾千年。

第2段

Originally, silkworm farming was solely restricted to women, and it was they who were responsible for the growing, harvesting and weaving. Silk quickly grew into a symbol of status, and originally, only royalty were entitled to have clothes made of silk. The rules were gradually relaxed over the years until finally during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD), even peasants, the lowest caste, were also entitled to wear silk. Sometime during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), silk was so prized that it was also used as a unit of currency. Government officials were paid their salary in silk, and farmers paid their taxes in grain and silk. Silk was also used as diplomatic gifts by the emperor. Fishing lines, bowstrings, musical instruments and paper were all made using silk. The earliest indication of silk paper being used was discovered in the tomb of a noble who is estimated to have died around 168 AD.

一開始，桑蠶養(yǎng)殖僅限女性。她們負(fù)責(zé)養(yǎng)育、收獲和紡織。絲綢很快變成地位的象征。最初，只有皇家可以穿絲綢制成的衣服。這些規(guī)矩隨著時(shí)間發(fā)展逐漸放松。最終，到了清朝（公元1644年-1911年），即便是農(nóng)民這一最低階層也可以穿絲綢了。漢朝（公元前206年到公元后220年）的某個(gè)時(shí)期，絲綢是如此寶貴，以至于它還被當(dāng)作貨幣單位使用。朝廷官員的俸祿是用絲綢支付的，農(nóng)民則用谷物和絲綢來納稅。絲綢還被皇帝當(dāng)成外交禮物使用。漁線、弓弦、樂器和紙張均由絲綢制成。使用絲制紙張的最早證據(jù)發(fā)現(xiàn)于一名貴族的墓中。據(jù)估計(jì)，他大約死于公元168年左右。

第3段

Demand for this exotic fabric eventually created the lucrative trade route now known as the Silk Road, taking silk westward and bringing gold, silver and wool to the East. It was named the Silk Road after its most precious commodity, which was considered to be worth more than gold. The Silk Road stretched over 6,000 kilometres from Eastern China to the Mediterranean Sea, following the Great Wall of China, climbing the Pamir mountain range, crossing modern-day Afghanistan and going on to the Middle East, with a major trading market in Damascus. From there, the merchandise was shipped across the Mediterranean Sea. Few merchants travelled the entire route; goods were handled mostly by a series of middlemen.

對這一異國織物的需求最終催生出一條利潤豐厚的貿(mào)易路線，即現(xiàn)在所謂的絲綢之路。它向西運(yùn)送絲綢，并將黃金、白銀和羊毛帶回到東方。絲綢之路因其最寶貴的商品而得名。它被視為比黃金更貴重。絲綢之路綿延6000多公里，從東方的中國一直到地中海地區(qū)，沿著長城，攀越帕米爾山脊，穿過今日的阿富汗，并延伸到中東。在大馬士革有一個(gè)主要的交易場所。從那里開始，商品被裝上船穿過地中海。很少有商人走完整條路線。貨物大多是由一系列中間商交接傳遞的。

第4段

With the mulberry silkworm being native to China, the country was the world’s sole producer of silk for many hundreds of years. The secret of silk-making eventually reached the rest of the world via the Byzantine Empire, which ruled over the Mediterranean region of southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East during the period 330-1453 AD. According to another legend, monks working for the Byzantine emperor Justinian smuggled silkworm eggs to Constantinople (Istanbul in modern-day Turkey) in 550 AD, concealed inside hollow bamboo walking canes. The Byzantines were as secretive as the Chinese, however, and for many centuries the weaving and trading of silk fabric was a strict imperial monopoly. Then in the seventh century, the Arabs conquered Persia, capturing their magnificent silks in the process. Silk production thus spread through Africa, Sicily and Spain as the Arabs swept through these lands. Andalusia in southern Spain was Europe’s main silk-producing centre in the tenth century. By the thirteenth century, however, Italy had become Europe’s leader in silk production and export. Venetian merchants traded extensively in silk and encouraged silk growers to settle in Italy. Even now, silk processed in the province of Como in northern Italy enjoys an esteemed reputation.

由于桑蠶是中國的本地物種，這個(gè)國家在好幾百年的時(shí)間里都是世界上唯一的絲綢生產(chǎn)商。制造絲綢的秘密最終經(jīng)由拜占庭帝國傳播到世界其他地方。它于公元330年到1453年統(tǒng)治著南歐、北非和中東組成的地中海地區(qū)。根據(jù)另一個(gè)傳說，為拜占庭皇帝Justinian服務(wù)的僧侶在公元550年將桑蠶卵藏在空心的竹子手杖里，偷偷帶到了君士坦丁堡（今日土耳其的伊斯坦布爾）。然而，拜占庭人和中國人一樣保守秘密。在很多世紀(jì)里，絲綢的紡織與貿(mào)易嚴(yán)格由國家壟斷。然后在七世紀(jì)，阿拉伯人征服了波斯，并在此過程中劫掠了寶貴的絲綢。絲綢生產(chǎn)由此隨著阿拉伯人對非洲、西西里和西班牙的掃蕩而傳播到這些地區(qū)。西班牙南部的安達(dá)盧西亞是十世紀(jì)歐洲的主要絲綢生產(chǎn)中心。然而，到了十三世紀(jì)，意大利成為歐洲絲綢生產(chǎn)和出口的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者。威尼斯商人到處進(jìn)行絲綢貿(mào)易，并鼓勵(lì)絲綢生產(chǎn)者到意大利定居。即使是現(xiàn)在，意大利北部科莫省加工的絲綢仍然享有很高的聲譽(yù)。

第5段

The nineteenth century and industrialisation saw the downfall of the European silk industry. Cheaper Japanese silk, trade in which was greatly facilitated by the opening of the Suez Canal, was one of the many factors driving the trend. Then in the twentieth century, new manmade fibres, such as nylon, started to be used in what had traditionally been silk products, such as stockings and parachutes. The two world wars, which interrupted the supply of raw material from Japan, also stifled the European silk industry. After the Second World War, Japan’s silk production was restored, with improved production and quality of raw silk. Japan was to remain the world’s biggest producer of raw silk, and practically the only major exporter of raw silk, until the 1970s. However, in more recent decades, China has gradually recaptured its position as the world’s biggest producer and exporter of raw silk and silk yarn. Today, around 125,000 metric tons of silk are produced in the world, and almost two thirds of that production takes place in China.

十九世紀(jì)和工業(yè)化見證了歐洲絲綢產(chǎn)業(yè)的衰落。更為廉價(jià)的日本絲綢是推動(dòng)這一趨勢的眾多因素之一。蘇伊士運(yùn)河的開通極大地方便了這一貿(mào)易的進(jìn)行。到了20世紀(jì)，尼龍這樣的新型人造纖維開始被用于傳統(tǒng)的絲綢制品中，例如襪子和降落傘。兩次世界大戰(zhàn)中斷了日本的原材料供給，也扼殺了歐洲的絲綢產(chǎn)業(yè)。第二次世界大戰(zhàn)結(jié)束后，日本的絲綢生產(chǎn)得以重建，生絲的制作工藝和品質(zhì)都有所提升。直到20世紀(jì)70年代，日本仍然是世界上最大的生絲生產(chǎn)商，實(shí)際上也是唯一的主要生絲出口商。然而，到了近幾十年，中國逐漸奪回它曾經(jīng)的地位，成為世界上生絲和絲線的最大生廠商與出口者。今天，全世界大約生產(chǎn)125000噸的絲綢，幾乎三分之二都來自中國。

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