Question

C What historical site impresses you most? I’ve always been fascinated by the pyramids in Egypt．A few years ago I braved a long queue and climbed through a narrow passage to reach the main chamber deep inside one of them．Like millions of other tourists, I marveled (赞叹) at stone-walled rooms full of the magic of this ancient civilization．

But popularity might be the destruction of such archaeological treasures．Take Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings for example．It lay untouched for more than 3,000 years until the British archaeologist Howard Carter uncovered it in 1922．Now more than 1,000 people a day walk through it．

But as more and more people visit, the temperature and humidity inside the tomb change．As a result, the beautifully decorated plaster is coming away from the rock．

In order to preserve its heritage, a replica (复制品) of the monument is being opened about 1 kilometer away from the actual burial site．Specialists have recorded every detail of Tutankhamun’s tomb and used the data to recreate it．

Adam Lowe from the organization behind the project says the copy is identical to the original．He believes visitors will want to become part of the force that protects it rather than a force that is leading to its destruction．So they won’t mind seeing a replica．

But for historian Tom Holland, a copy is still a copy．He believes that although preservation is important, there is something unique about places like Tutankhamun’s tomb．He says it was built by people who believed in the world of the spirits, the dead and the supernatural．You don’t have to believe in a god or gods to feel a place is consecrated (使圣化) and has a particular quality that can’t be reproduced．

What about you? Would you visit a replica of a monument rather than the original to help preserve it?

1.What may account for the destruction of some archaeological treasures like Tutankhamun’s tomb?

A．Climate change．

B．Copies．

C．Popularity．

D．Thieves．

2.What measures have been taken to preserve the heritage of Tutankhamun’s tomb?

A．Decorating the monument again．

B．Building a replica of the monument．

C．Limiting the number of visitors．

D．Moving the tomb away from the actual site．

3.The underlined word “identical” is closest in meaning to ________．

A．superior

B．Sensitive

C．Exposed

D．similar

4.Historian Tom Holland may hold the opinion that ________．

A．some unique ancient places can’t simply be replaced by replicas

B．visitors are advised to see replicas because preservation is first

C．ancient civilizations are consecrated and can’t be redecorated

D．visitors to ancient civilizations must believe in a god or gods

Answer 1