By modern standards， the hostile summit of Mount Llullaillaco， in the
Argentine Andes， is no place fro kids. The ancient Inca saw things differently
though， and so it was that one day， some 500 years ago， three children ascended
the frigid and treacherous upper slopes of the 22，000-ft. peak. The three had
spent time at the 17，000-ft. level， taking part in rituals that can only be
guessed at. Now， accompanied by a retinue of adults， they moved steadily upward.
They would not return. Once at the summit， the children-two girls and a boy，
between eight and 15 years old-would be ritually sacrificed and entombed beneath
5 ft. of rocky rubble. They may even have been buried alive.
And there the story might have ended but for the tireless efforts of Johan
Reinhard， an independent archaeologist funded by the National Geographic
Society. Reinhard's specialty is scaling the Andes in search of sacrificial
remains; he had already located 15 bodies， including the famed ice maiden he
found in 1995. But these three， whose discovery he announced last week， are by
far the most impressive. They were frozen solid within hours of their burial.
Two of the bodies are almost perfectly preserved; the third was evidently
damaged by lightening. The children's internal organs are not only intact but
also still contain blood. Says Craig Morris， an expert on Andean archaeology at
New York City's American Museum of Natural History： “It is truly a fantastic
discovery.”
What makes it so fantastic is not just the bodies themselves， but also the
wealth of artifacts that were buried along with them： 36 gold and silver
statues， small woven bags， a ceramic vessel， leather sandals， a small llama
figure and seashell necklaces. One of the girls， says Reinhard， “Has a beautiful
yellow， geometrically designed cover laid over her.” Her head sports a plume of
feathers and a golden mask.
Some of the bodies were provisioned with bundles of food wrapped in alpaca
skin， which indicates that the children came from the Incan social elite-not
surprising， since only people of high status would have been considered worthy
of sacrifice. Little is known about the sacrificial ceremony itself; these
objects， along with others found at the lower camp， should tell archaeologists
plenty.
The preserved bodies， meanwhile， will give scientists an unprecedented look
at Incan physiology. Reinhard and his team took care to pack the children in
plastic， snow and insulating foam before hauling them down the mountain， and the
Argentine military whisked them off to the nearby town of Salta. There， experts
will analyze their stomachs to find out what they ate for their last meal， their
organs for clues about their diet and their DNA to try and establish their
relationship to other ethnic groups. Reinhard will head back into the mountains.
There is no telling how many more bodies remain to be found.
注(1)：本文选自Time; 04/19/1999， p46;
注(2)：本文习题命题模仿对象为2002年真题(1、2、4题模仿Text4对应题;第3、5题模仿Text3的第3、4题);
1. From the first paragraph we learn that _____?
[A] the summit of Mount Llullaillaco was not hostile in the past
[B] ancient Incans used to hold sacrificial rituals on top of the
mountain
[C] burying children alive was a common practice in ancient Incan
society
[D] the three children made the mountain climbing by themselves
2. Which of the following statements is true according to the text?
[A] Johan Reinhard works with the National Geographic Society.
[B] Archaeological discoveries depend on the independent work of
archaeologists.
[C] The Andes is a treasure for archaeologists in search of sacrificial
remain.
[D] Andean archaeology focuses on unearthing human bodies.
3. Rehinhard's discovery shows that _____?
[A] ancient Incans were masters of body-preservation
[B] the children suffered a lot before they were buried
[C] Incan children from rich families were often made sacrifices
[D] ancient Incans had grasped a high level of craftsmanship
4. Which of the following best define the word “unprecedented”(line 1，
paragraph 5)?
[A] unexampled
[B] unusual
[C] precious
[D] unpredictable
5. We can draw a conclusion from the text that _____?
[A] Johan Reinhard's discovery will shed light on the study of ancient
Incans
[B] Reinhard will find a lot more bodies in the future
[C] Experts can now describe the sacrificial ceremony in detail
[D] Argentine military are also interested in archaeological activities 答案：B C D A A
发表于 2017-8-6 16:08:08