雅思阅读第041套P1-Ancient Chinese Chariots
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1below.
Ancient Chinese Chariots
A The Shang Dynasty or YinDynasty, according to traditional historiography, ruled in the Yellow Rivervalley in the second millennium. Archaeological work at the Ruins of Yin (nearmodern-day Anyang), which has been identified as the last Shang capital,uncovered eleven major Yin royal tombs and the foundations of palaces and ritualsites, containing weapons of war and remains from both animal and humansacrifices.
B The Tomb of Fu Hao is anarchaeological site at Yinxu, the ruins of the ancient Shang Dynasty capitalYin, within the modem city of Anyang in Henan Province, China. Discovered in1976，it wasidentified as the final resting place of the queen and military general Fu Hao.The artifacts unearthed within the grave included jade objects, bone objects,bronze objects etc. These grave goods are confirmed by the oracle texts, whichconstitute almost all of the first hand written record we possess of the ShangDynasty. Below the corpse was a small pit holding the remains of sixsacrificial dogs and along the edge lay the skeletons of human slaves, evidenceof human sacrifice.
C The Terracotta Army wasdiscovered on 29 March 1974 to the east of Xian in Shaanxi. The terracottasoldiers were accidentally discovered when a group of local farmers was digginga well during a drought around 1.6 km (1 mile) east of the Qin Emperors tomb aroundat Mount Li (Lishan), a region riddled with underground springs andwatercourses. Experts currently place the entire number of soldiers at 8,000 —with 130 chariots (130 cm long), 530 horses and 150 cavalry horses helping toward of any dangers in the afterlife. In contrast, the burial of Tutank Hamunyielded six complete but dismantled chariots of unparalleled richness andsophistication. Each was designed for two people (90 cm long) and had its axlesawn through to enable it to be brought along the narrow corridor into thetomb.
D Excavation of ancient Chinesechariots has confirmed the descriptions of them in the earliest texts. Wheelswere constructed from a variety of woods: elm provided the hub, rose-wood thespokes and oak the felloes. The hub was drilled through to form an empty spaceinto which the tampering axle was fitted, the whole being covered with leatherto retain lubricating oil. Though the number of spokes varied, a wheel by thefourth century BC usually had eighteen to thirty-two of them. Records show howelaborate was the testing of each completed wheel: flotation and weighing wereregarded as the best measures of balance, but even the empty spaces in theassembly were checked with millet grains. One outstanding constructional assetof the ancient Chinese wheel was dishing. Dishing refers to the dish-like shapeof an advanced wooden wheel, which looks rather like a flat cone. On occasionthey chose to strengthen a dished wheel with a pair of struts running from rimto rim on each of the hub. As these extra supports were inserted separatelyinto the felloes, they would have added even greater strength to the wheel.Leather wrapped up the edge of the wheel aimed to retain bronze.
E Within a millennium, however,Chinese chariot-makers had developed a vehicle with shafts, the precursor ofthe true carriage or cart. This design did not make its appearance in Europeuntil the end of the Roman Empire. Because the shafts curved upwards, and theharness pressed against a horse’s shoulders, not his neck, the shaft chariotwas incredibly efficient. The halberd was also part of chariot standardweaponry. This halberd usually measured well over 3 metres in length, whichmeant that a chariot warrior wielding it sideways could strike down thecharioteer in a passing chariot. The speed of chariot which was tested on thesand was quite fast. At speed these passes were very dangerous for the crews ofboth chariots.
F The advantages offered by thenew chariots were not entirely missed. They could see how there were literallythe warring states, whose conflicts lasted down the Qin unification of China.Qin Shi Huang was buried in the most opulent tomb complex ever constructed inChina, a sprawling, city-size collection of underground caverns containingeverything the emperor would need for the afterlife. Even a collection ofterracotta armies called Terra- Cotta Warriors was buried in it. The ancientChinese, along with many cultures including ancient Egyptians, believed thatitems and even people buried with a person could be taken with him to theafterlife.
SECTION 1: QUESTION 1-13
Questions 1-4
Do the following statementsagree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 1-4 onyou answer sheet, write
TRUE
if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE
if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN
If there is no information on this
1 _________________ Whendiscovered, the written records of the grave goods proved to be accurate.
2 _________________ Humanskeletons in Anyang tomb were identified as soldiers who were killed in thewar.
3 _________________ TheTerracotta Army was discovered by people lived who lived nearby, by chance.
4 _________________ The size ofthe King Tutankhamen’s tomb is bigger than that of in Qin Emperors’ tomb.
Questions 5-10
Complete the notes below.
Choose ONE WORD fromthe passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 5-10 onyour answer sheet.
The hub is made of wood fromthe tree of 5 _________________
The room through the hub was toput tempering axle in which is wrapped up by leather aiming to retain 6 _________________
The number of spokes variedfrom 18 to 7 _________________
The shape of wheel resemblesa 8 _________________
Two 9 _________________ was used tostrengthen the wheel
Leather wrapped up the edge ofthe wheel aimed to remain 10 _________________
Questions 11-13
Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THANTHREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
What body part of horse wasreleased the pressure from to the shoulder?
11 _________________
What kind road surface did theresearchers measure the speed of the chariot?
12 _________________
What part of his afterlifepalace was the Emperor Qin Shi Huang buried in?
13 _________________
答案
雅思阅读第041套P1-Ancient Chinese Chariotshttp://www.tuonindefu.com/?p=2336雅思阅读第041套P1:Ancient Chinese Chariots
