VOA慢速英语2016 华盛顿表演庆祝古兰经的艺术

Washington Show Celebrates the Art of the Quran 华盛顿庆祝可兰经艺术

A show with more than 60 of the most important manuscripts of and about the Quran opened recently in Washington, DC.

最近，有关可兰经最出名的60多件手稿在华盛顿特区展出。

The books and documents were created over more than a thousand years in countries across the Islamic world—from North Africa to Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan.

这些书籍和文件是伊斯兰世界国家历经一千多年时间才形成，从非洲北部到土耳其，从伊朗到阿富汗。

“The Art of the Qu’ran” is the first major exhibition of its kind in the United States.It can be seen at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, which is part of the world famous Smithsonian Institution.Massumeh Farhad is the chief curator of the Sackler Gallery.She is also responsible for its collection of Islamic art.

《可兰经艺术》是第一次在美国举行的同类大型会展。该文稿陈列于塞克勒艺术馆，塞克勒艺术馆是世界闻名的史密森学会的一部分。马苏梅·法尔哈德是塞克勒艺术馆的总策展人。主要负责收集这些伊斯兰艺术品。

She talked about the first thing visitors to the exhibit see—a very colorful, large manuscript.

她在讨论参观者看到的第一件艺术品，一件五颜六色的大幅作品。

“It certainly is one of the biggest and certainly the heaviest.It weighs some 60 kilos and it is quite remarkable¹.Many of these manuscripts were created primarily for display.They were given as gifts to mosques² and, and mausolea.”

“它一定是最大也肯定是最重的。大约重60千克，也确实引人注目。其中很多手稿都是为了进行展示。并将它们作为礼物赠与清真寺和陵墓。”

Most of the exhibit’s manuscripts are from The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul.Others are from the Smithsonian’s permanent collection.

这次展览中大部分手稿都来自于位于伊斯坦布尔的土耳其和伊斯兰艺术博物馆。另有一些则属于史密森博物馆的永久收藏。

The oldest were produced in 7th-century Damascus, Syria,while the most recent works are from 17th-century Istanbul.

其中最古老的一件产于7世纪叙利亚的大马士革，最新的作品则来源于17世纪的伊斯坦布尔。

Some works come from the burial places of Ottoman sultans in what is now Turkey.The sultans’ power once extended from southeast Europe to northern Africa and the Middle East.

有些作品来自奥斯曼帝国苏丹（即现在的土耳其）的墓地。奥斯曼帝国苏丹的势力曾从欧洲东南部一直延伸至非洲北部和中东地区。

“They were created for some of the most powerful sultans—rulers in these regions.And eventually, after many years, they were acquired by the Ottoman royal family.”

“这些手稿是为一些最有权力的苏丹人制造的，也就是为了这片区域的统治者制造的。但最终，这些人还是在多年之后被奥斯曼帝国的皇室俘虏。”

Massumeh Farhad says although each book or document has the same wording, they look different in appearance.She says the skill of the artists has made each manuscript a special work of art.

马苏梅·法尔哈德表示尽管每本书或者文件都采用了一样的措辞，但外观是不同的。她表示艺术家的技能让每个手稿都成为了一个独特的艺术。

“For instance, there is a manuscript by the calligrapher³ Yaqut,who is probably one of the greatest calligraphers to have ever worked in the Islamic world, from the late 12th—early 13th century.”

“比如，其中有书法家雅古特的手稿，雅古特是12世纪末13世纪初在伊斯兰世界从事艺术的最伟大书法家之一。”

The exhibit shows the beauty of the calligraphy⁴ and the extremely fine details of the Qurans.It also tells the stories of some of the manuscripts, their makers⁵ and earlier owners.

该展览显示了书法的美感以及可兰经极致的细节。此外，还讲述了一些手稿，其制作人以及早期主人的故事。

“We hope that visitors, whatever their interest, will come and take away some of these stories.Some, some may be interested in the calligraphy, some may be interested in particular calligraphers,or in the art of Illumination, and the way that the exhibition is organized we hope that we have something for all of the visitors.”

“我们希望我们的游客，不管他们的兴趣是什么，都能够了解这些故事。一些游客可能会对书法感兴趣，另一些可能对一些特别的书法家感兴趣，或者对照明艺术以及此次展览的组织方式感兴趣，我们希望能够给游客带来一些东西。”

The Quran exhibit continues at the Sackler Gallery through February 20, 2017.Many parts of the show can be seen online.

塞克勒艺术馆将在2017年2月20日之前一直进行古兰经展示。该展览的很多部分都可以在网上搜到。

Words in This Story

manuscript – n. the original copy of a play, book, piece of music, etc., often before it has been printed

exhibition – n. an event at which objects (such as works of art) are put out in a public space for people to look at; a public show of something

curator – n. a person who is in charge of the things in a museum

remarkable – adj. unusual or surprising; likely to be noticed

mausolea – n. plural⁶ of mausoleum a stone building with places for the dead bodies of several people or the body of an important person

calligrapher – n. a person who writes with beautiful and artistic⁷ handwriting

particular – adj. used to indicate that one specific person or thing is being referred to and no others

Illumination – n. a gold or colored decoration in an old book

1 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

2 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

3 calligrapher   

n.书法家

参考例句：

• People would ask, then, how come a young calligrapher should choose to marry a cold-drink peddler? 以后人家会说——年轻的书法家，怎么找一个卖冷饮的？ 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译
• Wang Xizhi was a great calligrapher in ancient Chiina. 王羲之是中国古代一位伟大的书法家。

4 calligraphy   

n.书法

参考例句：

• At the calligraphy competition,people asked him to write a few characters.书法比赛会上，人们请他留字。
• His calligraphy is vigorous and forceful.他的书法苍劲有力。

5 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 plural   

n.复数；复数形式；adj.复数的

参考例句：

• Most plural nouns in English end in's '.英语的复数名词多以s结尾。
• Here you should use plural pronoun.这里你应该用复数代词。

7 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。