在FBI的帮助下，伊克古文物重回家乡

Ancient Iraqi Relics¹ Find Their Way Home with

Help from the FBI

在FBI的帮助下，伊克古文物重回家乡

 

As Operation Iraqi Freedom rolled through Baghdad in the spring of 2003, an estimated 15,000 artifacts disappeared from the country's museums and archaeological sites. Many were hidden by museum curators and staff. Others were taken by looters only to appear on the international black market, or as souvenirs offered for sale to coalition² troops. Now, some of those stolen antiquities³ are returning home.

 

Last month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation⁴ announced its first recovery of looted cultural property from Iraq: 8 ancient Babylonian seals, 4,000 to 5,000 years old. A U.S. soldier purchased the tiny stone cylinders⁶ -- each smaller than a child's thumb -- as souvenirs before leaving Iraq. But when he got home he had a feeling the artifacts were more valuable than he originally thought. And says FBI Special Agent John Eckenrode, he was right.

 

John Eckenrode: Upon his return home, the soldier showed these to an archaeology⁷ professor who informed him they were real and that it was illegal to remove them from Iraq. He immediately expressed his desire to give them to the proper authorities so that they could be returned to the people of Iraq.

 

The soldier paid $300 for the seals. Their market value is 100 times that amount. Archeologist Richard Zettler says it's impossible to calculate their value to scholars of the ancient world.

 

Richard Zettler: Cylinder⁵ seals are actually small stone or shell cylinders with incised designs on them that were rolled on malleable⁸ material to make a raised, relief narrative⁹. They were used in antiquity¹⁰ to impress on lumps of clay that were used to secure doors, bags, boxes, other types of containers to keep them accessible only to authorized¹¹ persons. They were also rolled on clay tablets to document the authenticity¹² of the text. So they were one of the really first administrative¹³ and legal technologies that the ancient peoples of Mesopotamia employed.

 

Mr. Zettler, who participated in many digs in Iraq in the 1970's, says cylinder seals were used on a daily basis in the Babylonian communities along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

 

The recovered seals were repatriated¹⁴ in a simple ceremony last month at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology¹⁵. Said Ahmad, a member of the Iraqi mission to the United Nations, accepted the antiquities on behalf of his government.

 

Ahmad: We are thankful for all the people from the FBI and Pennsylvanian professors and the museum and even the soldier [who brought] the articles to the museum and decided¹⁶ to return [them] back to [their] proper country, which is Iraq. Thank you very much.

 

But before being returned home, Mr. Ahmad said the seals will be displayed at the archaeology museum.

 

Since the war in Iraq began, there has been an alarming increase in the number of antiquities stolen by syndicates of organized art thieves. According to the FBI, many of those relics end up in the United States, part of a black market that traffics in $5- to $8-billion worth of art treasures each year.

 

Given the severity of the problem, last year the FBI created the Art Crime Team (ACT). The Bureau's Debra Pierce says it is dedicated¹⁷ to recovering the world's stolen artwork.

 

Debra Pierce: This is a multi-national and multi-international agency effort. And FBI's ACT art crime teams joins France, England, Italy and Spain with their art crime teams to address these problems more effectively.

 

With this increased cooperation among international authorities and awareness¹⁸ by those who might find antiquities for sale, the hope is that more of Iraq's stolen cultural heritage will come home.

 

I’m Stasia Demarco in Philadelphia.

 

注释：

artifacts [5B:tifAkts] n. 史前古器物

archaeological [7B:kiE5lCdVikEl] adj. 考古学的，考古学上的

curator [kjuE5reitE] n. 馆长

looter 掠夺者，抢劫者

souvenir [5su:vEniE] n. 纪念品

antiquity [An5tikwiti] n. 古代的遗物

Babylonian [7bAbi5lEJnjEn] adj. 巴比伦的

incised [in5saizd] adj. 雕刻的

malleable [5mAliEbl] adj. 有延展性的

Mesopotamia [7mesEupE5teimjE] n. 美索不达米亚（西南亚地区）

1 relics   

[pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸

参考例句：

• The area is a treasure house of archaeological relics. 这个地区是古文物遗迹的宝库。
• Xi'an is an ancient city full of treasures and saintly relics. 西安是一个有很多宝藏和神圣的遗物的古老城市。

2 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

3 antiquities   

n.古老( antiquity的名词复数 )；古迹；古人们；古代的风俗习惯

参考例句：

• There is rest and healing in the contemplation of antiquities. 欣赏古物有休息和疗养之功。 来自辞典例句
• Bertha developed a fine enthusiasm for the antiquities of London. 伯沙对伦敦的古迹产生了很大的热情。 来自辞典例句

4 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

5 cylinder   

n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸

参考例句：

• What's the volume of this cylinder?这个圆筒的体积有多少？
• The cylinder is getting too much gas and not enough air.汽缸里汽油太多而空气不足。

6 cylinders   

n.圆筒( cylinder的名词复数 )；圆柱；汽缸；（尤指用作容器的）圆筒状物

参考例句：

• They are working on all cylinders to get the job finished. 他们正在竭尽全力争取把这工作干完。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• That jeep has four cylinders. 那辆吉普车有4个汽缸。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 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。

8 malleable   

adj.(金属)可锻的;有延展性的；(性格)可训练的

参考例句：

• Silver is the most malleable of all metals.银是延展性最好的金属。
• Scientists are finding that the adult human brain is far more malleable than they once thought.科学家发现成人大脑的可塑性远超过他们之前认识到的。

9 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

10 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。

11 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

12 authenticity   

n.真实性

参考例句：

• There has been some debate over the authenticity of his will. 对于他的遗嘱的真实性一直有争论。
• The museum is seeking an expert opinion on the authenticity of the painting. 博物馆在请专家鉴定那幅画的真伪。

13 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

14 repatriated   

v.把（某人）遣送回国，遣返( repatriate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The refugees were forcibly repatriated. 难民被强制遣送回国。
• Ancient artworks were repatriated from the US to Greece. 古代艺术品从美国遣送回希腊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 anthropology   

n.人类学

参考例句：

• I believe he has started reading up anthropology.我相信他已开始深入研究人类学。
• Social anthropology is centrally concerned with the diversity of culture.社会人类学主要关于文化多样性。

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

18 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。