纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 002奥杜瓦伊石质切割工具（2）（在线收听）

Leakey's goal was Olduvai Gorge, a deep crack in the flat savannah of northern Tanzania, not far from the border with Kenya.

李基(Leakey)的目的地是北坦桑尼亚与肯尼亚交界附近的奥杜瓦伊(Olduvai)峡谷——平坦大草原上一道幽深的裂痕。

It's part of the East African Rift Valley, a massive tear in the earth's surface, thousands of miles long.

它所隶属的东非大裂谷是地球表面长达几千英里的巨大缝隙，

It was here that time had been frozen within exposed layers of geology where, as Leakey examined the rocks shaped by the sun,

在这里，时光凝结在那些饱经大草原风吹日晒雨淋的裸露的地质层中。考古过程中，李基(Leakey)检测到

the wind and the rain on the savannahs, he reached a layer where the rocks were also shaped by something else - human hands.

其中一个岩层由某种非自然力塑造而成——那是人类的双手。

They were found next to bones, and it was clear that these stones had been shaped into butchering tools to strip meat

这些石器发现于散落的骨骼周围，

and break into the bones of animals killed on the savannah.

显然是用于剔骨剜肉的屠宰工具。

The layer where the tools were found was roughly two million years old. This was archaeological dynamite

该地质层粗略估计约200万年历史。这一发现在当时的考古学界可谓爆炸性的新闻。

Leakey's excavations produced the oldest humanly made things anywhere in the world, and they demonstrated that not only human beings,

李基(Leakey)发掘出的是全世界最古老的人造物，它们表明，不仅是人类，

but human culture, had begun in Africa. Our stone chopping tool was one of the ones that Leakey found.

甚至于人类文明，皆发端于非洲。我们要介绍的打制石器就是李基(Leakey)挖掘的文物之一。

Picking it up, your first reaction is it's very heavy, and if it's heavy of course it gives power behind your blow.

“你拿起它，第一反应就是它沉甸甸的，这样它的重力为击打提供冲力。

The second is that it fits without any compromise into the palm of the hand,

其次它恰到好处地符合你的手掌，

and in a position where there is a sharp edge running from my forefinger to my wrist.

锋利的刀刃正好位于食指和手腕之间。

So I have in my hand now a sharp knife. And what is more,

那现在我手里握着一把锋利的刀。此外，

it's got a bulge on it so I can get a firm grip on the edge which has been chipped specially, which is sharp

特别制作的凸起部分有助于我稳稳地握住利刃两端

I could perfectly effectively cut meat with this.

我能用它非常有效地切肉。

That's the sensation I have that links me with the man who actually laboriously chipped it once, twice, three times, four times, five times on one side.

这种感觉让我和它的制作者息息相通，他费力地在一边敲击了一，二，三，四，五……五次，

One, two, three ... three times at the other ... so eight specific actions by him, knocking it with another stone, to take off a flake,

另一边一，二，三……三次。他用另一块石头总共敲击了八次来剥落多余的部分，

and to leave this almost straight line, which is a sharp edge.

打制出这道近于笔直的利刃。”——大卫?阿滕伯勒

In the British Museum, we've recently made a new chopping tool using the same techniques as would have been used in Olduvai Gorge.

最近，大英博物馆仿奥杜瓦伊(olduvai)峡谷工艺制作了一个新的切割工具。

If I now hold that new one in my hand, and it becomes very clear how well you can use it to strike meat off an animal.

我现在拿着它剃肉，切身感受其操作方式。

We don't have any African wildebeests to hand, so I can try it using a bit of roast chicken.

我们手头没有非洲牛羚，所以我用一块儿烧鸡来小试牛刀。

But these chopping tools are marvellous and quick at getting the meat off the bone and then, with one sharp blow,

这些工具剃起肉来非常轻松，而且我只要重重一击，

I could break the bone and we'd be able to get to the marrow.

就能打断骨头得到骨髓。

But you can of course use a tool like this also to strip bark off trees or roots, so that you could eat them as well.

当然，你还可以用它剥掉树皮和根皮食用。

This is, in fact, a very very versatile kitchen implement.

它可真是一个多功能厨房用具呢！

The early humans who used chopping tools like this were probably not hunters themselves, but they were brilliant opportunists

使用诸如此类工具的早期人类也许本身并非狩猎者，而是聪明的机会主义者：

they waited until lions, leopards or other beasts had killed their prey and then they moved in with their chopping tools,

他们静候狮子、豹子以及其他野兽杀死猎物时，便带着切割工具紧随其上，

secured the meat and the marrow, and hit the protein jackpot.

护住肉和骨髓，然后享用这笔富含蛋白质的飞来横财。